Palestinian woman tries to stab guard at Jerusalem light rail station, is shot

A Palestinian woman attempted to carry out a stabbing attack at the Ammunition Hill light rail station in Jerusalem on Sunday afternoon before being shot, police said.

There were no other injuries in the suspected attack.

Police Commissioner Kobi Shabtai arrived at the scene within minutes, after running over from Police National Headquarters just across the street.

According to law enforcement officials, the alleged assailant attempted to stab a light rail security guard, who in response shot her in the leg.

The suspect was listed in good condition, according to medical officials cited by police. She was identified by police as a 50-year-old resident of the predominantly Jewish neighborhood of Pisgat Zeev.

The security guard who shot the suspect told Shabtai at the scene that the woman began to approach him in a suspicious manner.

The knife a Palestinian woman allegedly attempted to stab a security guard with, at the Ammunition Hill light rail station in Jerusalem, July 9, 2023. (Israel Police)

“I asked her if she needed any help, and she put her hand in her bag and pulled out a knife. I stepped back, cocked my gun and fired two shots in the air, and told her to drop the knife,” the guard said.

“She didn’t drop it so I fired once at her knee.”

Police Commissioner Kobi Shabtai (center) at the scene of an attempted stabbing attack at the Ammunition Hill light rail station in Jerusalem, July 9, 2023. (Israel Police)

The attempted attack comes as tensions between Israelis and Palestinians have been high across the region for the past year and a half, with the military carrying out near-nightly raids in the West Bank amid a series of deadly Palestinian terror attacks.