British man killed in Jerusalem stabbing

A British man has been stabbed to death in Jerusalem, the Foreign Office has confirmed.

The man, who has not been named, is understood to be a Jewish student. A fellow student was reported to have been injured in the incident.

The men are believed to have both been stabbed in the apparently random attack, which occurred around 8:30pm on Wednesday in the Old City.

Internal Security Minister, Gideon Ezra, was reported to have said that the attacker was a lone Palestinian, which would make finding him difficult.

It is understood that a large manhunt is now underway to find the attacker.

The murder is the first deadly attack to take place in the Old City for three years and comes as Israeli forces completed the withdrawal of Jewish settlers from 21 enclaves in Gaza and four in the West Bank.

There were reports of orthodox Jews throwing stones at police and another report of Jews attacking a private ambulance outside Hadassah Hospital, where the British student was taken after the attack.

Four Palestinians were also killed during a gun battle with Israeli forces who raided a refugee camp in the West Bank. The troops are believed to have entered the camp to arrest a group of men wanted in connection with two suicide bomb attacks earlier this year.

There were also reports of disturbances at one of the city’s Jewish orthodox neighbourhoods, Geula, on Thursday morning.

(KMcA/SP)