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Hamas Claims Responsibility for Jerusalem Terror Attack in Which Three Killed, Six Wounded
Israeli officials work at the scene of a Palestinian terrorist attack in Jerusalem, Nov. 30, 2023. Photo: REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun
Hamas claimed responsibility for the murder of three Israelis on Thursday morning by Palestinian terrorists as they waited at a bus station in Jerusalem.
The terrorists approached the bus stop at the entrance of Israel’s capital city around 7:40 am local time and opened fire at the civilians, killing three people and wounding six others. Police said two off-duty soldiers and an armed civilian in the area fired back, killing the attackers.
The terrorists were reportedly armed with an M-16 assault rifle and a handgun. A police search of their vehicle found hundreds of rounds of ammunition of ammunition.
The victims were 73-year-old Rabbi Elimelech Wasserman, a judge in the rabbinical court in Ashdod; a 67-year-old school principal from Beit Shemesh named Hanna Ifergan; and 24-year-old Livia Dickman from Har Nof.
Of the injured, two were listed in serious condition, three in moderate condition, and one in good condition, according to Israeli emergency services.
Hamas, the Palestinian terror group that rules Gaza, said in a statement that the two perpetrators — brothers Murad (38) and Ibrahim (30) Nemer, from the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Sur Baher — were “jihad-waging martyrs,” adding that the terrorist attack was in response to Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza.
“The heroes of our people are mobilizing to avenge the blood of the martyrs,” added Hamas, which called for an “escalation of resistance.” The terror organization launched the current war with Israel with its Oct. 7 massacre across southern Israeli communities.
Hamas also said the attack came in response to the killing of two children in the West Bank on Wednesday. Two kids, aged 8 and 15, as well as two senior terror commanders, were killed by Israeli forces in Jenin. Hamas claimed the 15-year-old as one of its members.
According to Israel’s Shin Bet security agency, the Nemer brothers were members of Hamas who were previously jailed for terror activity. Murad was jailed between 2010 and 2020 for planning terror attacks linked to Gaza, and Ibrahim was jailed in 2014 for undisclosed terror activity.
Political reaction to the attack was swift.
Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, who has been a public opponent of the recent ceasefire and hostage-prisoner exchange deal between Israel and Hamas, said Thursday’s attack was a violation of the temporary truce.
“With one hand Hamas signs a ceasefire, with the other it sends terrorists to murder Jews in Jerusalem,” he said. “This is not a ceasefire but rather a continuation of the conception of containment [of terror attacks] and concession that brought us murdered people, which gives [Hamas leader Yahya] Sinwar hope that he can exit this conflict with the upper hand.”
Speaking at the scene of the attack, Ben-Gvir praised his policy of arming more civilians and called on the government to increase its attacks on Hamas, saying, “We have to speak to Hamas only through intentions, only through the war.”
Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich echoed this call, tweeting, “We are at war on all fronts… We will pursue and destroy them with God’s help everywhere.”
War Cabinet Minister Benny Gantz, a former chief of staff of the army, also spoke about the attack on social media: “This attack is further proof of our commitment to continue the fight with strength and determination against the murderous terrorism that threatens our citizens. In Jerusalem, Gaza, Judea and Samaria, and everywhere,”
His statement appeared to be in response to international pressure on Israel not to continue its campaign against Hamas once the ceasefire ends.
Newly minted US Ambassador to Israel Jack Lew shared on X/Twitter that “we unequivocally condemn such brutal violence.”
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who was visiting Israel, said Thursday’s shooting was a reminder “of the threat from terrorism that Israel and Israelis face every single day… My heart goes out to the victims of this attack.”
In a separate incident on Thursday, two Israeli reservist soldiers were lightly injured in a car-ramming attack at a checkpoint in the northern west Bank, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said. Other soldiers at the scene shot and killed the driver.
The post Hamas Claims Responsibility for Jerusalem Terror Attack in Which Three Killed, Six Wounded first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Germany’s Halt to Arms Exports to Israel Is Response to Gaza Expansion Plans, Chancellor Says
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz attends a cabinet meeting at the Chancellery in Berlin, Germany, Aug. 6, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Liesa Johannssen
Germany’s decision to curb arms exports to Israel comes in response to Israel’s plan to expand its operations in the Gaza Strip, Chancellor Friedrich Merz said on Sunday in an interview with public broadcaster ARD.
“We cannot deliver weapons into a conflict that is now being pursued exclusively by military means,” Merz said. “We want to help diplomatically, and we are doing so.”
The worsening humanitarian crisis in Gaza and Israel’s plans to expand military control over the enclave have pushed Germany to take this historically fraught step.
The chancellor said in the interview that the expansion of Israel’s operations in Gaza could claim hundreds of thousands of civilian lives and would require the evacuation of the entire city of Gaza.
“Where are these people supposed to go?” Merz said. “We can’t do that, we won’t do that, and I will not do that.”
Nevertheless, the principles of Germany’s Israel policy remain unchanged, the chancellor said.
“Germany has stood firmly by Israel’s side for 80 years. That will not change,” Merz said.
Germany is Israel’s second-biggest weapons supplier after the US and has long been one of its staunchest supporters, principally because of its historical guilt for the Nazi Holocaust – a policy known as the “Staatsraison.”
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Newsom Calls Trump’s $1 Billion UCLA Settlement Offer Extortion, Says California Won’t Bow
California Governor Gavin Newsom speaks at a press conference, accompanied by members of the Texas Democratic legislators, at the governor’s mansion in Sacramento, California, U.S., August 8, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Carlos Barria
California Governor Gavin Newsom said on Saturday that a $1 billion settlement offer by President Donald Trump’s administration for UCLA amounted to political extortion to which the state will not bow.
The University of California says it is reviewing a $1 billion settlement offer by the Trump administration for UCLA after the government froze hundreds of millions of dollars in funding over pro-Palestinian protests.
UCLA, which is part of the University of California system, said this week the government froze $584 million in funding. Trump has threatened to cut federal funds for universities over anti-Israel student protests.
“Donald Trump has weaponized the DOJ (Department of Justice) to kneecap America’s #1 public university system — freezing medical & science funding until @UCLA pays his $1 billion ransom,” the office of Newsom, a Democrat, said in a post.
“California won’t bow to Trump’s disgusting political extortion,” it added.
“This isn’t about protecting Jewish students – it’s a billion-dollar political shakedown from the pay-to-play president.”
The government alleges universities, including UCLA, allowed antisemitism during the protests and in doing so violated Jewish and Israeli students’ civil rights. The White House had no immediate comment beyond the offer.
Experts have raised free speech and academic freedom concerns over the Republican president’s threats. The University of California says paying such a large settlement would “completely devastate” the institution.
Large demonstrations took place at UCLA last year. Last week, UCLA agreed to pay over $6 million to settle a lawsuit by some students and a professor who alleged antisemitism. It was also sued this year over a 2024 violent mob attack on pro-Palestinian protesters.
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Trump Nominates State Dept Spokeswoman Bruce as US Deputy Representative to UN
FILE PHOTO: U.S. State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce speaks during her first press briefing at the State Department in Washington, D.C., U.S., March 6, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque/File Photo
President Donald Trump said on Saturday he was nominating State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce as the next US deputy representative to the United Nations.
Bruce has been the State Department spokesperson since Trump took office in January.
In a post on social media in which Trump announced her nomination, the president said she did a “fantastic job” as State Department spokesperson. Bruce will need to be confirmed for the role by the US Senate, where Trump’s Republican Party holds a majority.
During press briefings, she has defended the Trump administration’s foreign policy decisions ranging from an immigration crackdown and visa revocations to US responses to Russia’s war in Ukraine and Israel’s war in Gaza, including a widely condemned armed private aid operation in the Palestinian territory.
Bruce was previously a political contributor and commentator on Fox News for over 20 years.
She has also authored books like “Fear Itself: Exposing the Left’s Mind-Killing Agenda” that criticized liberals and left-leaning viewpoints.
In a post after Trump’s announcement, Bruce thanked him and suggested that the role was a “few weeks” away. Neither Trump nor Bruce mentioned an exact timeline in their online posts.
“Now I’m blessed that in the next few weeks my commitment to advancing America First leadership and values continues on the global stage in this new post,” Bruce wrote on X.
Trump has picked former White House national security adviser Mike Waltz to be his U.N. envoy. Waltz’s Senate confirmation for that role, wherein he will be Bruce’s boss, is still due.
Waltz was Trump’s national security adviser until he was ousted on May 1 after he was caught up in a March scandal involving a Signal chat among top Trump national security aides on military strikes in Yemen. Trump then nominated Waltz as his U.N. ambassador.