On The Ground newsletter: Get a weekly dispatch from our international correspondentsGet a weekly dispatch from our international correspondentsGet a weekly international news dispatchAt least six people have been killed by two Palestinian gunmen in the outskirts of Jerusalem, in what Israeli police are describing as a “terrorist attack”. Eyewitnesses described scenes of horror as the two attackers opened fire at the bus stop near Ramot Junction during morning rush hour on Monday morning. A 50-year-old man, a woman in her fifties and three men in their thirties were identified by the ambulance service as the victims of the attack. Another 11 people have suffered injuries, including six who remain in a serious condition with gunshot wounds. Follow our live blog on the shooting here.As Israeli police continue to hunt for suspects who are believed to have aided the gunmen, The Independent looks at how the shooting unfolded and how eyewitnesses have described the attack. open image in galleryIsrael’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (C) and National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir (R) visit the scene (AFP/Getty)When did the shooting occur?Israeli police said that at around 10:15am local time on Monday, the two attackers opened fire at people waiting at a bus stop near Ramot Junction.The junction is situated on the northern entrance to Jerusalem, on a road leading to Jewish settlements in eastern Jerusalem and other areas of the Israeli-occupied West Bank. Dashboard camera footage has emerged which shows people fleeing from the vicinity of a bus which stopped by the side of a road as shots rang out. In another video, the bus’s windscreen and windows are seen pierced with bullet holes. open image in galleryIsraeli police and rescue teams respond at the scene of a shooting attack where several people killed and injured in Jerusalem (Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)Eyewitnesses describe ‘horrific’ sceneEyewitnesses described running from the bus stop as the two gunmen opened fire.“Suddenly I hear the shots starting … I felt like I was running for an eternity,” said Ester Lugasi, a victim injured in the attack, who spoke to Israeli TV from hospital. “I thought I was going to die.”Paramedic Fadi Dakidak, one of the first responders at the scene, said he had arrived to a “horrific sight”. “When we arrived at the scene, there was panic everywhere,” he told Ynet News. “People were running in all directions and shouting. We provided initial medical treatment to all the wounded and evacuated them to hospitals.”A woman who was on the bus when the gunmen opened fire told Channel 12: “It was terrible. I was by the back door, I fell on everyone and escaped, I saved myself.“There was gunfire there beyond anything imaginable. I can’t believe I’m standing here. Indescribable gunfire.”open image in galleryFirst responders at the scene of the shooting (Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)Has anyone claimed responsibility?Palestinian militant group Hamas praised two Palestinian “resistance fighters” who it said had carried out the attack. The group said it “commends” the actions of the attackers and described it as a “natural response” to the Israeli military’s activity in Gaza. Islamic Jihad, another Palestinian militant group, also praised the shooting.But both groups stopped short of claiming responsibility for the attack, and it remains unclear whether they were acting in the name of a group or as two gunmen. open image in galleryBullet holes seen in a bus where the shooting attack took place (REUTERS)What have Israeli leaders said?Speaking at the scene of the attack, Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israeli forces were pursuing suspects who aided the attackers.Authorities are “pursuing and surrounding” the villages where the attackers came from, he said. He described Israel’s response as a “war on several fronts”, and said Israel has thwarted hundreds of such attacks since this morning but was unable to do so on Monday. The prime minister also issued condolences to the families of the dead.open image in galleryBenjamin Netanyahu visited the site with far-right national security minister Itamar Ben-Gvir (AFP/Getty)Israeli president Izaac Herzog took to X, where he said: “Innocent civilians, women, men, and children were brutally murdered and wounded in cold blood on a bus in Jerusalem by vile and evil terrorists.”He said the attack “reminds us once again that we are fighting absolute evil”, adding that the “world must understand what we are up against”. Israeli police said the attackers had been “neutralised”.The two attackers had arrived by car where they opened fire at a bus stop at the junction. Weapons, ammunition and a knife have all been recovered at the scene, police said.
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‘I was running for an eternity’: Eyewitnesses recall horror of Jerusalem bus stop shooting that left six dead
