They said 15 other people were injured and six were in a serious condition.
Police said two attackers were “neutralised” soon after the shooting began on Monday morning (Monday afternoon AEST).
The shooting took place at a major intersection at the northern entrance to Jerusalem, on a road that leads to Jewish settlements located in east Jerusalem.
Israeli media reported that the two attackers boarded a bus and opened fire.
Footage of the attack showed dozens of people fleeing from a bus stop at the busy intersection during the morning rush hour. Paramedics who responded to the scene said the area was chaotic and covered in broken glass, with people wounded and lying unconscious on the road and a sidewalk near the bus stop.
There was no immediate comment on the attack from Palestinian militant groups.
The war in Gaza has sparked a surge of violence in both the Israeli-occupied West Bank and Israel. Palestinian militants have attacked and killed Israelis in Israel and the West Bank, while there has also been a rise in settler violence against Palestinians.
While there have been scattered attacks over the past months in Israel, the last deadly mass shooting attack was in October 2024, when two Palestinians from the West Bank opened fire on a major boulevard and light rail station in the Tel Aviv area, killing seven people and leaving many others wounded. Hamas’ military wing claimed responsibility for the attack.
According to police, the two men opened fire in the Jaffa neighbourhood of Tel Aviv, including shooting directly into a light rail carriage crowded with passengers that was stopped at a station.
