Terror attack in Israel yesterday morning
Three weeks ago a terrorist-produced instructional video hit the internet. It taught how to conduct individual acts of terrorism by slashing innocent Jewish People in crowded, everyday settings within Israel. Yesterday morning, a 23-year-old West Bank Palestinian did just that in Tel Aviv.
Cartoons quickly surfaced on social media in which Palestinians and Arabs praised the terrorist attack on a Tel Aviv bus January 21, 2015. Sadly, the number of injured in the incident totaled 17, not 10. The attack took place on a city bus during the morning commute. The terrorist stabbed the driver several times in the chest and then went after passengers. The injured driver struggled to open the bus doors while frightened passengers retreated to the back of the bus, some stabbed and bloodied as the assailant pressed in among them. A twelve year old schoolboy threw his backpack at the attacker to keep him away. Finally passengers broke a window and pushed the bus doors open to escape.
Video footage at the scene shows people running away and then identifies the Palestinian terrorist entering the frame. He attacked a fleeing woman, stabbing her in the back as he ran past. The woman immediately fell to the ground and another came to her aid as prison officers from a vehicle among the traffic gave chase after the terrorist. Seventeen people were injured in total, some of whom may have been passersby.
The prison officers were traveling behind the bus when they saw it begin to weave across the road. They saw it stop at a green light and “then people burst out and screamed for help,” one officer told The Times of Israel, adding, “we understood that it was a terror attack.” They quickly caught up to the assailant, shot him in the leg, and arrested him.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu blasted Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, saying, “This attack is a direct result of the toxic incitement spread by the Palestinian Authority against Jews and their state.” (Israel National News/Auretz 7)
Hamas leaders took to social media and applauded the attack calling it “a morning of resistance, a morning for the nation,” “extraordinary,” “heroic and brave,” and appealing for “more 'acts of resistance' either by individuals or groups” The Fatah group called it “an act of sacrifice.” Bloody cartoons soon splashed across Facebook and Twitter, with praises as diabolical as the attack itself. (Times of Israel).
These are perilous times for Israel.
Please continue your prayers for safety and peace in Israel
- Pray for the people who suffered yesterday’s attack, and for their families.
- Pray for those still hospitalized with severe injuries.
- Pray for discernment and wisdom for Israel’s leaders as they continue to govern and make decisions about how to deal with the persistent threats and attacks from within and outside Israel’s borders.
- Pray that these frightening times will drive Jewish hearts to God.
- Pray that they become open to their Messiah Yeshua come to know the eternal peace found only through faith in Him.
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Photo Source: IDF Blog
