Israel: Police chief urges civilians to use guns amid spate of attacks

The Israeli Police Commissioner General on Saturday urged all residents who have a licensed firearm to carry one after three armed attacks in occupied East Jerusalem and the occupied West Bank that left seven people dead and five seriously injured.

“Over the years, civilians trained in the use of licensed weapons have more than once neutralized terrorists and prevented more serious attacks by being close to the scene of an attack,” Commissioner Yaakov Shabtai said, according to a police statement.

“These citizens even more than once avoided harming civilians and security forces,” he added.

Israel is on high alert following three gun attacks in less than 24 hours – two in East Jerusalem – that left seven Israelis dead and five injured amid escalating violence in the area.

This morning, an armed object opened fire and wounded two people in the Jewish settlement of the city of David in the Palestinian region of Silwan in Jerusalem I’m busy.

The shooting ended when two members of the attacked Israeli group returned fire with their own weapons and neutralized the attacker.

“It must be remembered that there must be a valid license to carry a weapon, and only the owner who has the skills and competence to do so can use the weapon,” Shabtai explained.

peak wave of violence

Last night, a Palestinian killed seven Israelis after abandoning Shabbat prayers at a synagogue in the Neve Yaakov settlement, also in Jerusalem occupied, three more were injured.

And this Saturday, a Palestinian militant opened fire on a restaurant located in a Jewish settlement in West Bank occupied, but no casualties reported.

Faced with the peak of violence, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant called a meeting with senior security officials.

According to local press reports, officials were to discuss speeding up the issuance of firearms licenses to civilians and allocating additional funds to purchase guns.

For his part, the Minister of National Security, anti-Arab extremist Itamar Ben Gvir supported the initiative to increase the number of Israelis bearing weapons.

“Weapons for more civilians are a quick and deadly response to terrorism. Our duty is to create the National Guard and arm it as a major offensive and preventive force,” he wrote on Twitter.

The attacks came amid renewed violence between Israelis and Palestinians that escalated on Thursday when nine Palestinians were killed in armed clashes with Israeli troops in the Jenin refugee camp, which is the center of Palestinian militias in West Bank.

So far, 32 Palestinians have died in the conflict in 2023, averaging more than one per day. On the Israeli side, seven people died, all civilians.

(As reported by EFE)

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