UN condemns terror attack, offers condolences to victims’ families

Reuters

On Monday (8 September), two Palestinian gunmen opened fire at a bus stop on the outskirts of Jerusalem. Police described the incident as a “terrorist attack,” reporting that six people were killed and several others injured.

It is one of the deadliest attacks the city has seen in recent years.

The shooting occurred against the backdrop of nearly two years of conflict in Gaza, where Israel’s campaign against the militant group Hamas has left the territory devastated. In the West Bank, Palestinians continue to face tightened military restrictions and a rise in attacks by Jewish settlers.

Israeli President Isaac Herzog said that “innocent civilians, women, men and children were brutally murdered and wounded in cold blood on a bus in Jerusalem.”

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas condemned the targeting of civilians on both sides.

Hamas, however, praised the two Palestinians it described as “resistance fighters” for carrying out the attack. Another Palestinian militant group, Islamic Jihad, also commended the shooting. Neither group formally claimed responsibility for the attack.

UN Secretary-General’s spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric said the Secretary-General strongly condemned the attack, offered condolences to the victims’ families and wished a full and speedy recovery to those injured.

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