Jerusalem terror continues in two attacks within hours
Assailant reportedly shot dead near central bus station; Israeli security forces thwart attacker in Old City after day of relative calm.
A terrorist stabbed a 65-year-old woman, inflicting light-to-moderate wounds, near Jerusalem's central bus station on Wednesday evening, hours after an attack was thwarted elsewhere in the city.
The attacker attemped to board an Egged bus before being shot dead by Border Police. The station was evacuated and searched by police.
Police reported that during the incident, the Egged bus driver opened the doors to allow the wounded victim to board but closed them before the attacker could.
The attacker was identified as Ahmad Shaaban, 23, a resident of East Jerusalem's Ras al-Amud neighborhood. He was imprisoned between 2012 and 2015 for terrorist activities.
Following the attack, 31 people suffering from anxiety and shock were admitted to city hospitals.
Only a few hours earlier, a knife-wielding terrorist was shot dead at the Damascus Gate in Jerusalem's Old City before he was able to hurt anyone.
The earlier stabbing was caught live on film by an MSNBC crew. The attacker could be seen running down the stairs with a knife in one hand and a cell phone in the other before being shot.
An initial police inspection found that Border Police forces had noticed a young man sitting next to Damascus Gate, wearing camouflage-patterned clothes. Police said he appeared to be nervous and raised suspicions. Police approached him while maintaining a safe distance, they said, and when they got near him he drew a knife and rushed them.
The police said the officers at the scene immediately responded by firing at him. The assailant reportedly continued to run towards police while holding the knife, and was then shot dead.
According to Palestinian sources, the attacker was Bassel Sader, a resident of Hebron
An uneasy calm settled over East Jerusalem on Wednesday after security forces placed checkpoints around some Palestinian villages.
