An Arab man from east Jerusalem rammed his car into a crowd of commuters at a light rail station, killing three-month Chaya Zissel Braun and injuring seven others.
Hamas spokesman Mushir al-Masri said: “The attack in Jerusalem is an act of heroism and a natural response to the crimes of the occupation against our people and our holy places.” Hamas warned that the latest developments might augur the next "Palestinian intifada in Jerusalem."
An Islamic Jihad released an official statement on Thursday through its military wing, the Al-Quds Brigades, saying: “There is Zionist aggression against all of our people, and today the resistance responded to this attack. This is a natural right. This attack is a strong response to the Israeli occupation, whose crimes are unable to break the resistance.”
Both Hamas and Islamic Jihad called on the Palestinian Authority to “halt its security coordination with Israel and to act in resistance in the West Bank.” The two groups also praised the mostly Arab residents of east Jerusalem “for their fierce stance against the crimes of the occupation.”
The perpetrator was identified as Abed Abdelrahman Shaludeh, a 21-year-old Arab with a history of terrorist activities. He was shot and killed by police while trying to flee the scene.
Video footage captured by security cameras shows that the driver deliberately struck people waiting at the light railway stop on Ammunition Hill. Shaludeh’s car suddenly turned out of moving traffic and headed straight into the station, accelerating while hitting several people.
The three-month-old girl who was injured in the attack later died of her wounds. “She is a pure baby girl who hasn't done anything bad to anyone,” Shimshon Halperin, the girl's grandfather told Israeli television, adding: “She was murdered for no reason.”