Israel is poised to expedite gun applications after a weekend shooting in East Jerusalem that killed seven people, including a 70-year-old woman.
The measure was one of several announced by Israel’s Security Cabinet on Saturday night.
“Firearms licenses will be rapidly expanded to enable thousands of additional citizens to carry weapons,” a statement posted on the Israeli Prime Minister’s Facebook page said.
“If civilians have guns, they can protect themselves,” National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gubir told reporters over the weekend.
These measures include depriving the attacker’s family of social security entitlements. The entire cabinet was expected to consider the measure on Sunday.
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Palestinian gunmen opened fire outside a synagogue in East Jerusalem on Friday night, killing seven people, including a 70-year-old woman, and wounding three others before being shot dead by police.
The attack, which occurred while residents were observing the Jewish Sabbath, came a day after an Israeli military raid killed nine Palestinians in the West Bank. Friday’s shootings sparked celebrations in both the occupied West Bank and Gaza, with people firing guns into the air, honking their horns and handing out sweets.
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Addressing reporters at the Israeli National Police Headquarters, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said a security assessment had been carried out and that “immediate action” had been decided. He said he would convene the security cabinet on Saturday night after the Sabbath ended to discuss further responses.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.