Israel to Ease on Carrying Self-Defense Weapons After Synagogue Attack

MOSCOW, November 18 (Sputnik) — Israel will ease control on carrying self-defense weapons following the deadly attack at a synagogue in Jerusalem, Israel's Public Security Minister Yitzhak Aharonovich said on Tuesday.

"In the coming hours, I will ease restrictions on carrying weapons," Aharonovich said in a broadcast on the Israeli army's official radio station, as quoted by Israeli Arutz Sheva.

New rules may be applied to Israelis who obtain a license for carrying a gun.

Earlier on Tuesday, Aharonovich promised to take measures to provide better security in the city.

On Tuesday morning, four people were killed and eight wounded in a terrorist attack committed by two suspected Palestinian men with knives and axes at a synagogue in Jerusalem's Har Nof neighborhood. Both terrorists were shot dead by police.

© REUTERS / Ronen ZvulunIsraeli security personnel search a religious Jewish Yeshiva next to a synagogue, where a suspected Palestinian attack took place, in Jerusalem, November 18, 2014. Up to five people were killed on Tuesday in the suspected attack by two men armed with axes and knives, Israeli media reported.

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Israeli security personnel search a religious Jewish Yeshiva next to a synagogue, where a suspected Palestinian attack took place, in Jerusalem, November 18, 2014. Up to five people were killed on Tuesday in the suspected attack by two men armed with axes and knives, Israeli media reported.

© REUTERS / Ronen Zvulun An Israeli police officer gestures as he holds a weapon near the scene of an attack at a Jerusalem synagogue November 18, 2014. Two suspected Palestinian men armed with axes and knives killed four people in a Jerusalem synagogue on Tuesday before being shot dead by police, Israeli police and emergency services said, the deadliest such attack in the city in years.

An Israeli police officer gestures as he holds a weapon near the scene of an attack at a Jerusalem synagogue November 18, 2014. - Sputnik International

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An Israeli police officer gestures as he holds a weapon near the scene of an attack at a Jerusalem synagogue November 18, 2014. Two suspected Palestinian men armed with axes and knives killed four people in a Jerusalem synagogue on Tuesday before being shot dead by police, Israeli police and emergency services said, the deadliest such attack in the city in years.

© REUTERS / Ronen ZvulunIsraeli security personnel run next to a synagogue, where a suspected Palestinian attack took place, in Jerusalem, November 18, 2014. Up to five people were killed on Tuesday in the attack by two men armed with axes and knives, Israeli media reported.

Israeli security personnel run next to a synagogue, where a suspected Palestinian attack took place, in Jerusalem, November 18, 2014. - Sputnik International

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Israeli security personnel run next to a synagogue, where a suspected Palestinian attack took place, in Jerusalem, November 18, 2014. Up to five people were killed on Tuesday in the attack by two men armed with axes and knives, Israeli media reported.

© REUTERS / Ronen ZvulunIsraeli security personnel search a religious Jewish Yeshiva next to a synagogue, where a suspected Palestinian attack took place, in Jerusalem, November 18, 2014. Up to five people were killed on Tuesday in the suspected attack by two men armed with axes and knives, Israeli media reported.

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Israeli security personnel search a religious Jewish Yeshiva next to a synagogue, where a suspected Palestinian attack took place, in Jerusalem, November 18, 2014. Up to five people were killed on Tuesday in the suspected attack by two men armed with axes and knives, Israeli media reported.

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Israeli security personnel search a religious Jewish Yeshiva next to a synagogue, where a suspected Palestinian attack took place, in Jerusalem, November 18, 2014. Up to five people were killed on Tuesday in the suspected attack by two men armed with axes and knives, Israeli media reported.

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An Israeli police officer gestures as he holds a weapon near the scene of an attack at a Jerusalem synagogue November 18, 2014. Two suspected Palestinian men armed with axes and knives killed four people in a Jerusalem synagogue on Tuesday before being shot dead by police, Israeli police and emergency services said, the deadliest such attack in the city in years.

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Israeli security personnel run next to a synagogue, where a suspected Palestinian attack took place, in Jerusalem, November 18, 2014. Up to five people were killed on Tuesday in the attack by two men armed with axes and knives, Israeli media reported.

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Israeli security personnel search a religious Jewish Yeshiva next to a synagogue, where a suspected Palestinian attack took place, in Jerusalem, November 18, 2014. Up to five people were killed on Tuesday in the suspected attack by two men armed with axes and knives, Israeli media reported.

The incident is the latest in a series of terrorist attacks that have been on the increase in Jerusalem recently, amid Israel's decision to boost construction of housing units in East Jerusalem, as well as speculation on Israeli plans to change the status quo of the Temple Mount.

On November 5, Israeli police shot and killed a man who drove his car into a crowd of pedestrians in Jerusalem, killing one and injuring 13 people.

A similar incident took place in Jerusalem in October, when a 3-month-old infant and a student from Ecuador were killed when a resident of one of the city's Arab neighborhoods crashed into a tram stop.

Israeli and Palestinian leaders, as well as a number of Western high-ranking officials have condemned the deadly attack.