A man has been killed and at least four wounded in a suspected terror attack in the Israeli city of Haifa, medical officials have said.

The victim was in his 70s, while a teenage boy plus a woman in her thirties and another in her seventies were also injured in the attack, which was described by witnesses as a combined stabbing and shooting spree. 

It was later described by police as a stabbing attack. They identified the assailant as a member of Israel’s Druze Arab minority.

The Magen Davod Adom emergency service said four people had been injured, although various Hebrew media outlets have reported the number as six.

It comes as Israel teeters on the brink of all-out war with Hamas again after phase one of the hostage deal elapsed with no further agreement.

The latest attack took place on Monday morning near a shopping centre on Histadrut Boulevard in the northern coastal city.

Videos showed armed police converging to a point at the edge of the shopping centre amid the sounds of sirens.

It follows a failed bombing attack in Tel Aviv where three buses exploded due to suspected home-made devices which are thought to have detonated prematurely.

A series of terror attacks occurred in Israel following the start of the Gaza war on Oct 7, 2023. Authorities often blamed“terrorists, a term they use for incidents linked to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Until Monday, the Gaza truce had coincided with a halt to such attacks within Israel, as violence largely subsided in Gaza after more than 15 months of war between Israel and Hamas.