According to a report, a man died and two civilians were injured in an attack in Jerusalem on Sunday morning. Reportedly, the attacker, possibly formerly of Gaza lived in the Shuafat refugee camp, east Jerusalem.
The deceased was 26 year old Eliyahu David Kay. According to the report he had been living in Israel since 2017, his parents had recently joined him and he was employed at the western wall as a security guard. Reportedly, two civilians were injured, Rabbi Zeev Katzenelmbogen, and yeshiva student Aaron Yehuva Imergreen who is in a serious condition. According to the report, two police officers opened fire on the attacker who died.
Reportedly, Fadi Abu Shkaydam who had been attending the Al Aqsa mosque daily, fired shots from a submachine gun near an entrance to the Temple Mount. According to the report, his wife and son were said to have left the country several days before the attack. Reportedly, hamas have taken responsibility for the attack, saying, Israel will pay the price for the iniquities it commits against Al Aqsa mosque, Silwan, Sheikh Jarrah and elsewhere. Silwan and Sheikh Jarrah are predominantly Palestinian neighbourhoods in Jerusalem.
The village of Silwan is thought to be built on the site of the city of David. The Temple Mount was the site of the first Jewish temple, built by King Solomon. According to biblical script it contained the ark of the covenant and the tablets of stone. Reportedly, the temple was destroyed by Babylonians around 587 bc. According to biblical narrative, a second temple was built on the site by returnees from Babylonian exile around 516 bc, which was reportedly destroyed by roman soldiers around 70 ad.
According to reports, the site was expanded and the temple restored in 37 bc by Herod, of Greek Arabian descent and a roman client king. Reportedly, only four walls remain from the period including the western wall, thought to be closest to the holy of holies where the ark of the covenant was placed, the most sacred site in Judaism. The arab conquest of 634/38 resulted in the building of the dome of the rock on the site of the original temple and the Al Asqa Mosque to the south.
The temple Mount has been the site of Palestinian protests and clashes with the police over Israeli policies in contested areas, raising the question of why Israel doesn’t substantiate peaceful co-existence under Israeli law in all territories.