A shooting Friday in Israel left two dead and injured at least seven after a gunman opened fire at a Tel Aviv pub in a major commercial section.
The suspect was apparently alone and had an appearance that was “not Eastern”, according to Israeli news outlet Haaretz.
Israeli police are continuing to search the area for the gunman and have not yet determined whether the shooting was a terrorist act or criminal in nature.
Israeli media reported that the suspect is an Arab from Wadi Ara, citing police sources. Wadi Ara is an area in northern Israel with a large Arab citizen population. A man who claims to be the suspect’s father called the police after seeing footage of the attack. The alleged shooter is reportedly a 29-year-old who was sentenced to five years in jail in 2006 for attempting to grab a soldier’s gun.
The New Year’s Day shooting came amid escalating violence between Palestinians and Israelis in the region.
A video released shows the shooter firing rounds as individuals in the pub move to safety.
