Two Palestinian gunmen opened fire in Tel Aviv’s Sarona Market on Wednesday night at 9:30, killing four people and injuring many more at a café there. Police identified the gunmen as 21-year-old cousins from Yatta, south of Hebron in the West Bank. One gunman was wounded and taken to the hospital; the other was arrested. One eyewitness told The Times of Israel that the assailants were dressed up in “black suits, white shirts, and skinny ties.” They ordered dessert, waited 15 minutes, then stood up and started shooting.
Reported The New York Times:
The manager of the Sarona branch of the popular cafe, Max Brenner, which specializes in chocolate, told the Israeli news site Ynet that the gunmen had posed as customers and had sat and ordered food before they took weapons out of their bags and began shooting.
According to The Times of Israel, the gunmen “were seen using Carl Gustav-style guns, and according to Israel Radio they also had knives.”
Chico Edri, head of Israel Police’s Tel Aviv district, told reporters the incident was over and no other suspects were thought to be at large. He said one gunman had been arrested, the other shot and then taken into custody. Edri said the police had seized the weapons used in the attack.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu returned from a visit to Moscow shortly after the attack and reportedly rushed to army headquarters, which is across the street from the scene of the crime.
Jonathan Zalman is a writer and teacher based in Brooklyn.
