A gunman opened fire at a bus near Jerusalem’s Old City early Sunday, wounding eight Israelis in a suspected Palestinian attack that came a week after violence flared up between Israel and militants in Gaza, police and medics said.
Two of the victims were in serious condition, including a pregnant woman with abdominal injuries and a man with gunshot wounds to the head and neck, according to Israeli hospitals treating them.
The shooting occurred as the bus waited in a parking lot near the Western Wall, which is considered the holiest site where Jews can pray.
Aftermath of Sunday's shooting attack in J'lem
(Video: Haim Goldich)
Israeli police said forces were dispatched to the scene to investigate. Israeli security forces were in pursuit of a suspect seen fleeing on foot to the nearby Palestinian neighborhood of Silwan.
The wounded were taken to city hospitals.
Bus driver Daniel Kanievsky said when he first heard shooting, he wanted to drive away quickly but was helping a disabled passenger in a wheelchair board the bus.
"The bus door was open to activate the ramp for wheelchair access, which meant I could not move the bus. People on board were hurt," he said.
The attack in Jerusalem followed a tense week between Israel and Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank following three days of fighting across the Gaza border.