Israeli Police Say 4 Wounded in Stabbing Attack

An assailant stabbed and wounded four Israelis, including a 13-year-old girl, in southern Israel on Saturday before fleeing the scene, setting off a large manhunt, police said.

Police spokeswoman Luba Samri said the stabbing attacks appeared to be ideologically driven, rather than criminal, and that police were sweeping the city of Kiryat Gat to try and apprehend the attacker.

The attack appeared to be part of a two-month spree of violence ignited by tensions surrounding a sensitive Jerusalem holy site. The unrest has spread across Israel, the West Bank and the Gaza border.

Since mid-September, Palestinian attacks have killed 17 Israelis, mostly in stabbings, while 84 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire. Of those, 52 are said by Israel to be attackers and the rest were killed in clashes with Israeli troops.

On Thursday, a pair of stabbing and shooting attacks carried out by Palestinians killed three Israelis, a Palestinian and an American teenager in one of the deadliest days of the recent outburst.

Israel says the current spate of violence is due to a Palestinian campaign of lies and incitement surrounding the sensitive holy site. The Palestinians counter by saying it is a result of frustration from nearly a half-century of occupation.

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