Car Hits Crowd in Jerusalem 'Attack'

VOA News
Last Updated: 5 November 2014 (11:39AM)

Israeli police say a Palestinian man has driven a car into a crowd of pedestrians in Jerusalem in a "deliberate attack" that killed one person and injured nine others, including several police officers.

The assault followed a clash between Israeli police and dozens of Palestinians who threw rocks at the officers near a disputed Jerusalem holy site after Jewish nationalists announced plans to visit the area.

Neighboring Jordan recalled its ambassador to Israel to protest what it called 'unacceptable' Israeli raids at the al-Aqsa mosque and in East Jerusalem.

Authorities said the car hit a train platform Wednesday, then the man got out to attack people with a metal pole. Police shot him dead.

The attack comes two weeks after a similar incident in the same area.

In that attack, a Palestinian driver slammed a car into a crowded train station, killing a baby and injuring eight other people.

The ancient compound marks the holiest place in Judaism and third holiest in Islam, and it is a flashpoint of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Israel briefly closed the Mosque of al-Aqsa last week amid growing unrest after police killed a suspected Palestinian gunman in a nearby Arab neighborhood.

The suspect had allegedly shot and critically wounded right-wing Israeli rabbi Yehuda Glick, who advocates Jewish prayers at the disputed holy place and even the rebuilding of the biblical Temple there.

Jordan's State Minister for Media Affairs, Mohammad al-Momani, says the government's delegation in New York would be told to "submit an official complaint to the Security Council so as for this to be debated at the Security Council level."

"We said that all diplomatic and legal options are open for Jordan and Jordan will take all these options and use them in order to stop the Israeli behavior and actions in Al Haram al-Shareef, and we strongly emphasize that Israel must abide by international low and the international humanitarian law to preserve the status quo of the holy sites in Al Haram al-Shareef," he said.

VOA's Scott Bobb contributed to this report from Jerusalem.