Israeli police released the identity of the gunman who shot the eight students inside the library of a well-known religious school in Jerusalem, The New York Times wrote on its Web site.

The gunman’s name was released the same day the families of the eight students killed in the attack attended the funerals of their children.

The man responsible for what local police labeled as the worst massacre in the past 20 years is Ala Abu Dhaim. According to the local reports he once worked as a driver for the Jewish religious school. His family confirmed the info according to Reuters.

However, the director of the school denied this information regarding Dhaim while interviewed on a local radio. He underlined the fact that the seminary did not employ Arab drivers and that he did not know Dhaim.

Eight people were killed and 10 other were wounded on Thursday as the militant opened fire at the entrance to the Mercaz Harav yeshiva and then went to the library where he opened fire again. He was using a Kalashnikov, Israeli police said.

The killed and wounded were Jewish students aged between 15 and 26.

Although initial reports showed that there were two gunmen, there was actually just one and he was killed by an Israeli army officer, who entered the school after hearing gunfire, Jerusalem police chief Aharon Franco said.

The attack was cheered in the Gaza Strip and the Hamas militant group claimed it according to The Associated Press. At least 120 Palestinians were killed in the latest Israeli military operations in Gaza. About half of them were civilians.

This attack could cause a serious setback in the ongoing peace efforts between the two parties. However, an Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman said during a statement that the peace talks will certainly continue despite the fact that "terrorists are trying to destroy the chances of peace”.