An Arab resident of east Jerusalem was shot by the police overnight Sunday in the Jewish neighborhood of Neve Yaakov after shouting “Allahu Akbar,” setting fire to a car and damaging ten other cars.

The suspect was also holding a suspicious object in his hand that could not be identified by the police and was wearing a coat. When the police arrived at the scene, they demanded that he remove his coat, and when he refused, they shot him.

“Earlier this morning, the police received a report about a person causing damage to many vehicles in the Neve Ya’akov neighborhood in Jerusalem,” a statement from Israel Police said on Monday morning.

“Police officers who were called to the scene identified the suspect who was wearing a coat and holding some object in his hand. At the same time, an explosion was heard from a vehicle at the scene, which the Arab had allegedly set on fire.”

“The officers began the procedure of arresting a suspect and asked him to remove his coat but he did not respond to their calls. At one point, the suspect began muttering ‘Allahu Akbar’ and other verses and a police officer fired a single bullet at him.

“The suspect, a resident of East Jerusalem in his 20s, was injured and was evacuated to the hospital for medical treatment. Police forces arrived at the scene, and found a vehicle that had been set on fire and at least 10 other vehicles that the suspect had damaged.”

(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)