JERUSALEM — Two elderly Jewish women were stabbed Tuesday by two masked assailants while walking on a popular promenade overlooking the Old City of Jerusalem in what is being called a terror attack.
The victims, reported to be in their 70s or 80s, were taken to a Jerusalem hospital in moderate condition with stab wounds to their arms and upper bodies following the morning attack in the eastern Jerusalem neighbourhood of Armon Hanatziv, also known as East Talpiot. One of the women is a Holocaust survivor, reports the Times of Israel.
They were walking with a group of women on the promenade, which marks the border between the eastern and western halves of the city, and is usually full of joggers, walkers and tourists.
Police said they arrested two men in the eastern Jerusalem neighbourhood of Jabel Mukaber and were continuing to search for other suspects. Security was heightened in public areas of the city following the attack, according to police.
The incident is being considered a nationalist attack. Police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld called the two arrested men “terrorists” in a tweet.
Police units arrest 2 terrorists who carried out stabbing attack in Jerusalem. Heightened security continues at public areas in the city.
— Micky Rosenfeld (@MickyRosenfeld) May 10, 2016
According to the Times of Israel, however, the two men were released hours after they were brought in. “After a thorough investigation of the suspects who were arrested in sweeps after the attack, the suspicion of their involvement in the attack was removed and they were released,” police spokesperson Luba Samri said.
The search for the assailants is ongoing.
