Tel Aviv shooting: Palestinian who killed two and injured eight shot dead by Israeli forces

Authorities say motive for attack not immediately clear

A policeman gestures at the scene in the aftermath of a shooting attack in Dizengoff Street in the centre of Israel's Mediterranean coastal city of Tel Aviv (AFP via Getty Images)

The gunman who killed two people and injured eight others in a shooting in central Tel Aviv on Thursday has been shot dead by security forces.

After an hours-long manhunt through the city, officers found the man hiding near a mosque in Jaffa, just south of Tel Aviv, Israel's Shin Bet security agency said on Friday.

During an exchange of fire, the attacker was identified as a Palestinian from the occupied West Bank and was killed, the agency added.

On Thursday the gunman shot dead two people and injured eight others in central Tel Aviv.

Thursday’s attack brings the tally of killings in Israel this month to 13, the sharpest spike in the country for years.

Emergency services rushed to Dizengoff Street on Thursday night after the shooting unfolded in a crowded area with several bars and restaurants.

The nearby Ichilov hospital said two people have died and eight others are being treated for serious injuries.

Local authorities said the motive for the attack was not immediately clear.

Israeli prime minister Naftali Bennett said he was closely monitoring the situation from the country’s military headquarters in downtown Tel Aviv.

Simmering tensions have intensified of late following a series of attacks by Palestinian assailants which saw 11 people killed ahead of the holy Islamic month of Ramadan.

Last year, protests and clashes which broke out at the same time sparked an 11-day Gaza war.

Police and forensics expert arrive at the scene (AFP via Getty Images)

Emergency services arrived in droves to the scene and police, searching for the shooter, told residents to stay indoors.

A police spokesman told Channel 13: “A terrorist opened fire at short range and then fled on foot. Several people are wounded.”

“Don’t leave your homes. Don’t stick your heads out of the window. Stay off your balconies,” Eli Levy added.

Broadcasters shared footage appearing to show armed officers running down Dizengoff Street, a major commercial street, and smaller side streets trying to track down the attacker.

Leaders from Israel, Jordan and Palestine have been engaged in a series of meetings in recent weeks, with the former taking several steps to quell tensions, including issuing thousands of additional work permits for Palestinians from the Gaza Strip.

It follows Israel’s announcement that it would allow women, children and men over 40 from the occupied West Bank to pray at the Al-Aqsa Mosque in east Jerusalem on Friday, the first weekly prayers of Ramadan.

The mosque is the third holiest site in Islam and sits on a hilltop that is the most sacred site for Jews, who refer to it as the Temple Mount. The holy site has long been a flashpoint for Israeli-Palestinian violence.