Israel has suspended entry permits for more than 80,000 Palestinians after four people were killed and several others were injured by two gunmen in a crowded open-air shopping centre in central Tel Aviv.
Officials say the attackers were Palestinian cousins from the village of Yatta, south of Hebron, in the occupied West Bank. They are now in custody, with one of them being treated for gunshot wounds.
"Dressed in black suits, the two men sat down and ordered food, according to witnesses, before embarking on a shooting rampage," the New York Times says.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Surveillance footage revealed scenes of chaos as panicked customers rushed to escape the gunfire. Eyewitnesses claim the attackers were dressed as Hasidic Jews.
"We in Tel Aviv have for years been a target of terrorism. No terrorism will defeat us," said city Mayor Ron Huldai.
Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said: "We will take the necessary steps to attack the attackers and defend those who need to be defended."
Tel Aviv has suffered a number of deadly assaults since last October, leading to the deaths of two dozen Israelis and two US visitors, mostly killed in stabbings, says the NYT.
Since the beginning of the year, Israeli forces have shot dead nearly 200 Palestinians, notes Al Jazeera.
"Tensions over Jewish access to a volatile and contested Jerusalem holy site, revered by Muslims as Haram al-Sharif (Noble Sanctuary) and Jews as Temple Mount, have fuelled the violence," it adds.
-
‘No Other Choice,’ ‘Dead Man’s Wire,’ and ‘Father Mother Sister Brother’Feature A victim of downsizing turns murderous, an angry Indiana man takes a lender hostage, and a portrait of family by way of three awkward gatherings
-
Political cartoons for January 11Cartoons Sunday’s political cartoons include green energy, a simple plan, and more
-
The launch of the world’s first weight-loss pillSpeed Read Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly have been racing to release the first GLP-1 pill
-
Iran cuts internet as protests escalateSpeed Reada Government buildings across the country have been set on fire
-
US nabs ‘shadow’ tanker claimed by RussiaSpeed Read The ship was one of two vessels seized by the US military
-
Why recognizing Somaliland is so risky for IsraelTHE EXPLAINER By wading into one of North Africa’s most fraught political schisms, the Netanyahu government risks further international isolation
-
Israel approves new West Bank settlementsSpeed Read The ‘Israeli onslaught has all but vanquished a free Palestinian existence in the West Bank’
-
How Bulgaria’s government fell amid mass protestsThe Explainer The country’s prime minister resigned as part of the fallout
-
Femicide: Italy’s newest crimeThe Explainer Landmark law to criminalise murder of a woman as an ‘act of hatred’ or ‘subjugation’ but critics say Italy is still deeply patriarchal
-
Brazil’s Bolsonaro behind bars after appeals run outSpeed Read He will serve 27 years in prison
-
Americans traveling abroad face renewed criticism in the Trump eraThe Explainer Some of Trump’s behavior has Americans being questioned
