New York, Dec 10 (IANS/EFE): New York police have killed a man, apparently with a mental disorder, who had attacked an Israeli student with a knife at a synagogue and then threatened police officers, authorities said.

The incident took place late Tuesday at a synagogue in Brooklyn. The attacker was identified as Calvin Peters, 49, and the student as Levi Rosenblat, 22.

According authorities speaking at a press conference, Peters had visited the synagogue twice earlier and on both occasions had been asked to leave the premises.

However, on the third occasion, he came armed with a knife and injured Rosenblat on the right side of his head. Rosenblat is at a hospital and his condition is said to be stable.

On being confronted by three policemen, Peters first dropped the knife on a table, but later picked it up again and threatened one of the officers. He was shot and killed.

A part of the incident has been captured on video which has been published by the New York Post.

New York Police deputy commissioner John Miller said that Peters suffered from a mental disorder and since 1982 had been arrested on 19 occasions for minor crimes.

Officials said there was no reason to believe that Peters was ideologically motivated by anti-Semitism and that it was an isolated incident.

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said in a statement that the incident underlined the urgent need to improve services for those with mental problems after it was learned that Peters should have been under medical attention and had not been taking his medications.

De Blaise also lauded the response of the officers in the face of an emergency situation, especially at a moment when the tactics of the police are being questioned in the city.

The mayor has also said that police would tighten security at religious centres as a precautionary measure.