Violence clashes between Palestinians and Israeli police have erupted in East Jerusalem after police shot dead a Palestinian man suspected of having tried to kill a Jewish activist hours earlier. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas called the killing of the shooting suspect “tantamount to a declaration of war."
Reuters reports:
Israeli police on Thursday shot dead a 32-year-old Palestinian man suspected of having tried hours earlier to kill a far-right Jewish activist, leading to fierce clashes in East Jerusalem and fears of a new Palestinian uprising. […]
[Moataz] Hejazi was suspected of shooting and wounding Yehuda Glick, a far-right religious activist who has led a campaign for Jews to be allowed to pray at the Al-Aqsa compound.
Glick, a U.S.-born settler, was shot as he left a conference at the Menachem Begin Heritage Center in Jerusalem late on Wednesday, his assailant escaping on the back of a motorcycle. A spokesman for the center said Hejazi had worked at a restaurant there. Glick, 48, remains in serious but stable condition with four gunshot wounds, doctors said.
Police tracked Hejazi to his family home in Abu Tor and reportedly cornered him on an adjacent building's terrace. After being fired upon, the police shot and killed Hejazi.
Reuters reports that an elderly Arab Abu Tor resident described Hejazi as a troublemaker who "should have been shot 10 years ago," while others described his family as "good people." Hejazi had been released in 2012 from Israeli prison after serving 11 years.
Hamas and Islamic Jihad praised Hejazi for shooting Glick, Islamic Jihad calling Hejazi's death a "martyrdom" that ended a life dedicated to Jihad:
"We praise his martyrdom that came after a life full of Jihad and sacrifice and which responded to the call of holy duty in defending Al-Aqsa mosque."
