Violence returns to Jerusalem after two-week lull

Two Palestinian girls were shot on Monday morning after allegedly stabbing an man with scissors near a central Jerusalem market.

One of the girls, who were aged 16 and 14, was killed, while the other was seriously injured and was taken to hospital in custody, a spokesperson for the Israeli police confirmed to Middle East Eye.

A 70-year-old Palestinian resident of Bethlehem was stabbed in the back during the attack, and a 27-year-old Israeli security guard was shot in the hand in what may have been a case of friendly fire, a local hospital said.

The two Palestinians who were shot were cousins from Kalandia refugee camp north of Jerusalem.

The 16-year-old who was shot and killed was named locally as Hadeel Wajih Awad, the younger sister of Mahmoud Awad, who was shot by Israeli forces during clashes at the notorious Kalandia checkpoint in early 2013 - Awad spent nine months in a coma before dying of his injuries in November of the same year.

Central Jerusalem’s Mahane Yehuda market, close to the site of Monday's violence, is Jerusalem's best known market and is a popular tourist destination.

Monday’s stabbing was the latest in a wave of attacks since 1 October that have left 90 Palestinians dead, including one Arab Israeli, as well as 16 Israelis, an American and an Eritrean.

Around half of the Palestinians killed have been alleged attackers, while dozens of other people have also been killed during clashes with the Israeli army.

The attacks were originally focussed in and around Jerusalem but had shifted to the occupied West Bank, particularly in and around the flashpoint city of Hebron. 

Monday's stabbing and shootings were the first violence to hit Jerusalem in nearly two weeks.

On Sunday an Israeli and three alleged Palestinian attackers were killed across the West Bank.