Late Thursday night, two individuals were killed and more than a dozen others were wounded after a shooting in a busy area of Tel Aviv. Israeli officials confirmed the attack, which occurred at a bar in the city. The gunman was reportedly killed by security forces amid a manhunt. Israel’s General Security Service released a statement on Friday morning confirming the details of the incident. The gunman was shot and killed by the Shabak security forces following an exchange of fire. The suspect was reportedly hiding near a mosque in Jaffa at the time of his death.
The gunman has been identified as 28-year-old Raed Hazem, a resident of the Palestinian city of Jenin in the West Bank. Hazem did not have any clear organization affiliation, background, or previous arrests, according to Israeli forces. The Shabak service stated that he did not have a permit to enter Israel and was an illegal resident. The General Security Service stated that it will conduct an investigation into the attack, which involved hundreds of security forces.
