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Photos:
Damascus Gate (MaanImages/Emily Mulder, File). Published by Maan News

Scene of the attack. Published by YNET News

Weapon from the attack. Published by YNET News

Weapon from the Attack. Published by YNET News
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BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) -- Israeli police reported on Friday evening that an attack took place on Sultan Suleiman street outside the Damascus Gate entrance to the Old City of occupied East Jerusalem, saying that one Israeli police officer was critically injured and later succumbed to her wounds, while the three attackers -- who police spokesperson Micky Rosenfeld referred to as "Arab terrorists" -- were shot dead. 

All three Palestinians were shot dead by Israeli police at the scene. Israeli police spokeswoman Luba al-Samri said that the Israeli police officer, a 23-year old woman named Hadas Malka, succumbed to her wounds after being stabbed by one of the attackers, while a number of others were injured in the attack.

The Palestinian Ministry of Health identified the slain Palestinians as Adel Hassan Ahmad Ankoush,18, Baraa Ibrahim Saleh Taha, 18, and Usama Ahmad Dahdouh, 19, all from the central occupied West Bank village of Deir Abu Mashaal. 

Israeli news daily Haaretz reported that the attack was carried out at two scenes near Damascus Gate; two of the Palestinians were shot and killed after reportedly assaulting Israeli police officers with knives and guns, while the third attacker was shot dead after fatally stabbing the border policewoman as she attempted to reach for her gun.

A second Israeli officer was reportedly lightly wounded in the attack, and evacuated to Israel's Hadassah hospital in Jerusalem, where Malka was also evacuated and eventually succumbed to her wounds. 

Two Palestinian bystanders, including a 30-year-old from the southern occupied West Bank city of Hebron, were also hospitalized for light to moderate injuries sustained by being caught in the shoot-out, according to Israeli police, though it remained unclear if they came under fire from Israeli forces or from one of three assailants. 

Witnesses later told Ma'an that several Palestinians were injured by shrapnel from bullets shot by Israeli forces, who shot “haphazardly” in every direction during the attack.

Rosenfeld, the Israeli police spokesperson, reported that following the attack, police units implemented heightened security measures in the area -- which had already seen an increased police presence earlier in the day for the third Friday of the holy month of Ramadan, as thousands of Palestinians from across Israel and the occupied West Bank traveled to Jerusalem to perform prayers at Al-Aqsa mosque.

Rights groups have accused Israel of implementing a "shoot to kill" policy against Palestinians who could have been detained with nonlethal means.

According to Ma'an documentation, 33 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces and settlers since the start of 2017, while eight Israelis have been killed by Palestinians during the same time period. 
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5 wounded in shooting, stabbing attack in Jerusalem; border policewoman and 3 terrorists killed

Three terrorists are shot and neutralized by security forces near the Damascus Gate in Jerusalem after carrying out combined shooting and stabbing attack; border policewoman Hadas Malka, 23, later succumbs to her wounds at the hospital.

by Omri Efraim, Yoav Zitun & Rotem Elizera for YNET News
Published: 16.06.17 , 20:02

Three terrorists armed with semi-automatic weapons and knives struck in two different parts of Jerusalem's Old City, Friday night, killing 23-year-old border policewoman Hadas Malka, who later succumbed to her wounds.

All three terrorists, Palestinians from the West Bank, aged 18-19, were shot and killed at the scene by security forces.

Malka had been evacuated in critical condition to Hadassah Mt. Scopus Hospital for emergency medical treatment after the attack.

Four others were moderately and lightly wounded.

According to reports from the scene, two terrorists opened fire at a police force near Sultan Suleiman St. while the third terrorist stabbed Malka near the Damascus Gate.

Jerusalem district police commander Yoram Halevy described the attack, saying, "At one scene, near Sultan Suleiman St., two terrorists—one armed with a semi-automatic weapon and the other a knife—attacked police. Police responded and killed both attackers at the scene. Several meters away, at the Damascus Gate, an additional terrorist stabbed a border policewoman, critically wounding her. The terrorist was shot by other officers in the area."

According to MDA, two members of security forces were wounded, with another border policeman sustaining light injuries to his eye. Additionally, a 22-year-old man and a 40-year-old man were evacuated to Shaare Zedek Medical Center in moderate condition after sustaining gunshot wounds to the torso and limbs, respectively.

According to Halevy, "We are in the third part of Ramadan and as we near the end of the holiday, the more sensitive the situation becomes. We will have to make difficult decisions such as whether or not to allow people to come to Jerusalem, if we should allow them to pray in such large numbers, which can lead to terror attacks.

"We will conduct a situational assessment tonight with security forces and it is possible that there may be serious consequences in regards to the issue of Ramadan, which only ends in ten days."

According to sources in the security establishment, the style of attack conducted Friday evening is reminiscent of the combined attack which killed border policewoman Hadar Cohen last February.