The scene of Friday afternoon’s shooting spree in Tel Aviv. Police are still searching for terror suspect Nashat Melhem. Photo: Channel 2/screenshot.

The Wadi Ara man who opened fire and killed two young men at a Tel Aviv pub last Friday was shot dead by security forces in an exchange of fire on Friday night, Israeli police officials said.

Nashat Milhem, 29, was killed by Yamam special police forces and Shin Bet agents in a gun battle outside a residential building in the northern Israeli town of Arara.

Milhem’s death followed days of heightened security and tension and varied reports on the killer’s whereabouts, including reports he had fled to the West Bank.

Police launched a “major operation” in the Sharon region of Israel’s coastal plain and in the Wadi Ara district of Umm el-Fahm. Additionally, police and the Shin Bet boosted their presence throughout Tel Aviv in the days following the attack, and there was a major search in the northern neighborhood of Ramat Aviv.

In addition to the two dead, Milhem also wounded eight others in the attack at an outdoor pub in Tel Aviv on Dizengoff Street last Friday. He allegedly killed another taxi cab driver during his escape.

Security remained heightened in Tel Aviv until Thursday. Israeli intelligence received information that Milhem had fled to the North sometime over the last few days, but most of the details surrounding the manhunt remained under a gag order as the investigation continued. The residential building in which he chose to hide may have been a family property, according to reports. Milhem’s father was also apparently still in police custody.

The Prime Minister’s Office released a statement on Friday thanking the police, special forces and Shin Bet for their service in the last week since Milhem carried out the attack.