At least seven people have been injured after gunmen opened fire at separate locations in the city of Jerusalem, Israeli officials have said.
The attackers shot at a bus and opened fire in a car park near the historic Western Wall at 01:24 local time (22:24 GMT), emergency officials said. Police have launched a search for the gunmen, who fled after the attacks.
A police spokesperson told local media that the incident is being treated as a suspected terror attack.
The ambulance service, Magen David Adom (MDA), said it was treating several people, including two who were in a critical condition. The victims – six men and one woman – have been taken to hospitals in Jerusalem, MDA added.
It remains unclear as to how many shooters were involved, however Hebrew media has reported that police are searching for at least two suspects.
Video on social media showed heavily armed police at the scene and local media reported that worshippers had been briefly prevented from leaving the Western Wall compound.
A police spokesperson said officers have “begun securing the area, investigating the case and searching for the suspects, who fled”.
The Times of Israel reported that at least one attacker had waited for the bus to arrive at a stop, before opening fire as passengers boarded.
“The bus was full, jam-packed,” driver Daniel Kanievsky told local media. “I stopped at a bus stop at King David’s Tomb and then I heard gunfire, people started yelling, people were hurt inside the bus.”
The Western Wall is one of the holiest sites in Judaism and thousands of worshippers go on a pilgrimage to the site every year to pray.
The attacks come a week after Israeli raids targeting Palestinian militants in the Gaza strip killed 44 people. An Egypt-brokered ceasefire brought an end to three days of intense violence. (BBC)
