TEL AVIV (Reuters) – The glass siding of the light rail station where two Palestinian gunmen shot up a main street in south Tel Aviv, killing at least seven people, remains splintered. A sign next to it scribbled in marker reads: “They were simply waiting for the train.”
On Wednesday, hours before sundown and the start of the Jewish New Year, people gathered and lit memorial candles on the sidewalk of the popular boulevard in the neighbourhood of Jaffa, known for its mixed population of Jews and Arabs.
“Today it’s a holiday in Israel, so I (hope) it’s going to be a quiet one. I really hope for peace, so we don’t need to be worried to go out to the street. To go to the train,” said Sraia Harer, 21, who until recently lived nearby and came to light a candle.
Police said Tuesday’s attack was carried out by two Palestinians aged 19 and 25 from Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank.
They said the gunmen boarded the light rail and opened fire on passengers, then continued on foot to attack pedestrians before being stopped by a security patrol and an armed civilian who killed one attacker and critically wounded the other.
The shooting occurred around the time of an Iranian missile attack on Israel that set off sirens and explosions nationwide, and as Israeli forces thrust into south Lebanon to hammer the Iran-backed Hezbollah group while continuing their almost year-long war against Palestinian Hamas militants in Gaza.
The victims of Tuesday’s shooting attack included three young women – one a mother who used her body to protect her baby, according to local media. Sixteen people were wounded, police said.
Israeli security forces have arrested several people in the areas of Hebron and Jerusalem suspected of aiding the attackers, police said. Police labelled the incident a terrorist attack but there was no immediate claim of responsibility from armed Palestinian factions or other militant groups.
Israel has been on high security alert for months as the war in Gaza approaches its first anniversary on Oct. 7 and the escalating conflict in Lebanon appeared set to draw in Iran.
“I’m horrified, I live about five minutes from here. This is the station I use everyday. I was here 20 minutes before the terrorist attack,” said 25-year-old student Alex Kaidrikov. “Yesterday was horrifying.”
(Reporting by Rami Amichay; writing by Ari Rabinovitch; editing by Mark Heinrich)
