Jerusalem police announced on Saturday that they were raising the national alert to its highest level after seven people were killed and three wounded in a terror attack near a synagogue in Jerusalem’s Neve Ya’akov neighborhood on Friday evening.

An hour after the announcement, two people were shot and seriously wounded in a second attack that was carried out by a 13-year-old outside Jerusalem’s Old City.

Police commissioner Kobi Shabtai ordered that a team of officers from the elite Yamam counterterrorism unit be stationed in Jerusalem following the two attacks.

Senior police officials told the Kan public broadcaster they would increase forces across the country, especially in the capital. In addition to the bolstering of police, IDF chief Herzi Halevi issued instructions to increase forces in the West Bank and along its security barrier, and to prepare for a potential escalation in the region.

Police have also said they were concerned about possible “price tag” revenge attacks against Arabs, Times of Israel reported.

An unnamed security source told the Walla news site that the defense establishment was deeply aware of the potential for escalation by Jewish right-wing extremists.

“When the prime minister called yesterday for people not to take the law into their own hands, it was not just based on a feeling,” they said, referring to comments by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. “There is a very great fear that something will happen to set the area on fire. The security establishment is aware of this.”

Police officials told the Ynet news site that the three major events set to take place in Tel Aviv on Saturday evening — the mass demonstration against the judicial overhaul, the soccer derby and a concert by Eyal Golan — would be secured and held as planned.

Organizers of the protest said the rally would begin with a minute’s silence and there would be no music at the event as a mark of respect for those killed and injured in Jerusalem. A demonstration was also to be held in the capital, as well as in Haifa, Beersheba and a number of other locations across the country.

Also, the police informed that 42 people were arrested on Saturday in connection with Friday’s deadly attack in Neve Ya’akov, many of them relatives or acquaintances of the terrorist, 21-year-old Alqam Khayri — a resident of East Jerusalem.

Palestinian media said the gunman’s father was among those summoned by police for questioning.

Security officials told the Walla news site that Khayri had shown relatively advanced shooting skills during the attack, and an investigation was underway to examine whether he had received weapons training.

"When we approached the area of the attack, we noticed the attacker’s vehicle fleeing the scene. We started chasing the terrorist, fired in his direction and the vehicle stopped,” said a police officer identified only as Maj. G. “The terrorist got out and started shooting in our direction. At that point we got out of the car, and neutralized [the terrorist], thus preventing further killing of innocents.”

According to police, Khayri arrived by car at 8:13 p.m. at the synagogue in the East Jerusalem neighborhood on Friday evening and opened fire at people outside the synagogue and other passersby.

Two of the seven people shot and killed were identified on Saturday as couple Eli and Natali Mizrahi.

Image courtesy: Yonatan Sindel/Flash90