JERUSALEM — A young American opened fire at a hotel in the Red Sea resort city of Eilat Friday, killing one person before police shot him dead. The incident appeared to be based on a personal dispute.
Police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said the attacker stole a gun from a hotel security guard and fired a number of shots at the Leonardo Club hotel in the Red Sea resort city, killing one person.
Police anti-terror units stormed the hotel, and the gunman fired back from the hotel kitchen, Rosenfeld said. Police returned fire, killing the attacker, he said.
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Dana Zinati, a spokeswoman for the Eilat municipality, told Israel's Channel 2 that the man is an American Jewish man in his 20s who came to Israel on a program that brings American Jews to Israel.
Israeli media reported the man had once worked at the hotel, and that the person he killed was a hotel employee who had argued with him. Police could not immediately verify that account.
Michal Bouaron, a guest at the hotel, said police ordered guests to stay in their rooms during the incident.
The hotel is filled to capacity, Israeli media reported, because of the Jewish holiday of Sukkot, when many Israelis take vacations. Eilat is a favorite vacation spot for Israelis.
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