Obama condemns attack on Jerusalem synagogue

US President Barack Obama Tuesday condemned the attack on a synagogue in Jerusalem that left four people dead, calling for joint efforts to ease tensions.

"I strongly condemn today's (Tuesday) terrorist attack on worshipers at a synagogue in Jerusalem, which killed four innocent people, including US citizens Aryeh Kupinsky, Cary William Levine, and Mosheh Twersky, and injured several more," Xinhua quoted Obama as saying in a statement.

There is and can be no justification for such attacks against innocent civilians, he said, adding that at this sensitive moment in Jerusalem, it is all the more important for Israeli and Palestinian leaders and ordinary citizens to work cooperatively together to lower tensions, reject violence, and seek a path forward towards peace.

According to Israeli media, the terror attack at a synagogue in the Har Nof neighbourhood at the Western edge of Jerusalem also left a dozen victims injured.