A car slammed into pedestrians in Jerusalem on Wednesday in what authorities are calling a vehicular terror attack. One person died of injuries and at least five others were hurt, three of them seriously.
The attack occurred in two separate locations in the capital.
Two of those seriously wounded were rushed to Hadassah University Medical Center at Ein Karem. A few of the other injured were treated at the scene.
The driver rammed his vehicle into crowds at two separate locations near the light rail track in Jerusalem. Immediately after hitting eight pedestrians, security forces nearby shot and killed the driver.
Police said that the driver of a van swerved his vehicle into the light rail station on the corner of Bar-Lev and Shimon Hatzadik Streets. He then continued toward Moshe Zaks Street nearby, where he ran into more people.
After crashing the car, the driver emerged from the vehicle with a metal crowbar and began to attack people nearby. A police and Border Police force subsequently shot and killed the assailant.
According to security sources, the perpetrator of the attack, Ibrahim al-Akri, was a resident of the east Jerusalem village of Shuafat. Like all east Jerusalem residents, he was a holder of an Israeli identity card, enabling him to move freely throughout the capital.
Security sources told media outlets that al-Akri was a known supporter of Hamas.
