Five People Were Killed During Two Separate Attacks By Palestinians

Following two separate attacks by Palestinians in Tel Aviv and the occupied West Bank, five people are dead.

The first involved the fatal stabbing of two Israeli men outside a room being used for prayers in Tel Aviv. According to The New York Times, Israeli police said the stabbing took place in a second-floor shop selling synagogue decorations.

A group of Israelis was praying at the shop earlier today when a bloodied man stumbled inside and collapsed, The Guardian reports.

Shimon Vaknin, a witness, reportedly said,

In the middle of the prayers, suddenly we saw a man fall down wounded at the entrance to the synagogue and behind him a man with a knife who was trying to get inside. Someone shouted, 'There's a terrorist!'

Vaknin said he and his fellow worshippers then held the door shut as the attacker tried to force his way inside.

The bloodied man was the third to be stabbed and sustained minor wounds.

Two more people were fatally stabbed near the shop beforehand, one of whom was reportedly in his 20s.

Police said the attacker, a 36-year-old father of five from the occupied West Bank, was stopped by civilians before being arrested, according to ABC News.

He was reportedly working at a nearby restaurant and obtained a permit to work in Israel.

A shooting took place at the West Bank settlement of Alon Shvut just hours later, killing three people and injuring eight or nine more.

Police said the Palestinian shooter, who was in a car, opened fire on an Israeli minibus before purposefully driving into a group of people at a road junction.

Israeli security forces shot the attacker and took him into custody, according to FOX News.

An Israeli said to be in his 50s, a Palestinian bystander and an 18-year-old American were killed by the shooter, who may have had an accomplice.

The past seven weeks have seen the deaths of 17 or 18 Israelis and approximately 80 Palestinians, 52 of whom were reported to be attackers.

A dispute that began in September over the right to pray at a holy site in Jerusalem is reportedly the root of these clashes.

Citations: 2 Israelis Stabbed to Death in Tel Aviv by Palestinian (The New York Times), Five killed in attacks in Tel Aviv and the West Bank (The Guardian), Tel Aviv Stabbing, West Bank Attack Leave 5 Killed (ABC News), At least 5 dead including American tourist in West Bank and Tel Aviv terrorist attacks (Fox News)