BY NIR HASSON, HA’ARETZ—
Israel Police went on high alert across the country Wednesday, following a terror attack in central Jerusalem earlier in the day in which one woman was killed and more than 30 people were wounded.
Police throughout Israel were moved to level 3 operational activity – the highest level of alert – after a bomb exploded in front of the International Convention Center, in the first terror attack in the capital after a lull of almost three years.
The decision to place police officers on high alert was made by the Police Commissioner Dudi Cohen, Public Security Minister Yitzhak Aharonovich and the head of Jerusalem police Aharon Franco.
They also decided to bolster the number of officers in the Jerusalem and southern districts, and the police will be out in full force in the coming days throughout Israel.
Cohen sought, however, to reassure the public in the wake of the attack, stating that Israel is “not returning to the era of terror attacks” and stressing that the police are prepared for all eventualities.
The head commissioner continued, saying that the Israel police force “knows how to assess a situation and intelligence and we will know to change our mode of action if necessary.”