Twin blasts in Jerusalem kill at least one, injure over a dozen others: Police

(JERUSALEM) — Twin blasts near bus stops in Jerusalem on Wednesday morning killed at least one person and injured 15 others in what Israeli police described as a suspected “coordinated terror attack.”

“Not an easy morning,” Israel Police Commissioner R.N. Yaakov Shabtai said. “This kind of attack has not been seen for many years — two attacks in a row. The main effort of the Israel Police is currently scanning all areas — bus stops, transportation and crowd gatherings — at the same time as the manhunt to get hold of the perpetrator of the attack. We will do everything in our power together with all the other security forces to reach this cell.”

Both explosions went off near separate bus stops during rush hour — the first on the edge of Jerusalem and the second in the city’s northern Ramot neighborhood. Four of the wounded were hospitalized in serious condition, according to police.

“It is a rolling terror incident,” Jerusalem District Commander Superintendent Doron Turgeman said. “We are currently still in the stages of scanning and activity at the scene of the incident and in the wider scope. The investigation is in its infancy with all the force, both the district forces and national reinforcements.”

A manhunt for the perpetrators is underway, with hundreds of police officers and border guards working with security forces to conduct searches on the ground and in the air, according to police.

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said in a statement, “We condemn unequivocally the acts of terror overnight in Jerusalem. The United States has offered all appropriate assistance to the Government of Israel as it investigates the attack and works to being the perpetrators to justice.”

Members of the public were asked to avoid the areas of the blasts, where investigators and bomb squads remain on scene, police said.

The apparent attacks came amid heightened tensions between Israelis and Palestinians as well as an uptick in deadly violence. For the past several months, Israeli security forces have been conducting nightly raids in the occupied West Bank, prompted by a string of attacks against Israelis that have left 19 people dead.

Copyright © 2022, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.