At least one person died and nine others were critically injured in a suspected shooting incident at a bus station in Israel’s Beersheba city on Sunday, media reports said.
The incident occurred at a time when Israel was engaged in an intense conflict with Hamas and Hezbollah groups, escalating tension in the Middle East.
Magen David Adom (MDA), Israel’s national ambulance service, was quoted as saying by The Jerusalem Post that the paramedics were providing medical treatment at the scene to nine individuals who had been wounded with various degrees of injuries.
A young woman who was injured in the incident later died in the hospital.
According to reports, the attacker was identified as 29-year-old Ahmad Said Suliman al-Ukabi.
He is an Israeli citizen with a Bedouin background.
Mansour Abbas, head of Raam (United Arab List), condemned the attack and was quoted as saying by The Jerusalem Post, “This is not the way of the Arab citizens who knew how to show a moral and legal civic commitment and abhor any kind of violence, and reject any attempt to drag them to participate in acts of political violence.”
The incident coincides with the passing of a year since the deadly October 7, 2023 attack by Hamas on Israel.