Israeli police spokeswoman, Luba Simari, said the incident took place in the Armon HaNetziv (also known as East Talpiot) promenade in southern part of East Jerusalem al-Quds on Sunday afternoon as a large truck veered off road and plowed through a group of Israeli soldiers who had just gotten off a bus, Arabic-language Palestine al-Yawm news agency reported.
[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="555"]
Israeli rescue forces and soldiers attend to an injured woman at the scene of a truck-ramming incident in Jerusalem January 8, 2017. (via Reuters)[/caption]She added that four Israeli soldiers lost their lives and 18 others sustained injuries in the attack. Three of the wounded troopers are said to be in critical condition.
Israeli media outlets later reported that the driver of the truck hadbeen shot dead, without providing any details about the identity of the driver.
Palestinian sources, however, identified the man as Fadi Qanbar a former prisoner and resident of the Old City of Jerusalem al-Quds.
Inspector General of Israel Police Bentzi Sau has described the situation as "very serious, calling for large reinforcements to be dispatched to the area of the attack.
[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="555"]
Israeli security forces and emergency personnel gather at the site of a vehicle-ramming attack in Jerusalem on January 8, 2017. (via AFP)[/caption]Meanwhile, in a related development, the Islamic Jihad Movement in Palestine termed the incident as a natural response from Palestinians to the ongoing Israeli aggression and its violent treatment of Palestinian people.
Later reports indicated that Israeli forces hadstormed Jabal al-Mokaber region in occupied East Jerusalem al-Quds, breaking into the house of the Palestinian allegedly behind the truck ramming attack.
