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On 3 October 2015, a Palestinian resident of
"> This period has also seen the increasing prevalence of Jewish "price tag" operations, such as the arson attack that murdered three members of the Dawabsheh family in the West Bank village of Duma about two months ago.Anshel Pfeffer
Anshel Pfeffer (Hebrew: אנשיל פפר, born 22 June 1973) is a British-born Israeli journalist. He is a senior correspondent and columnist for '' Haaretz'', covering military, Jewish and international affairs, and Israel correspondent for ''Th ...
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Opinions about underlying causes of the stabbings vary. The Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs attributes the stabbings to "incitement" by both radical Islamists and Palestinian government leaders, and, in particular, untruths being circulated about Israeli actions and false assertions that Israel intends to change the Status quo on the
On 3 October 2015, a Palestinian resident of al-Bireh
Al-Bireh, al-Birah, or el-Bira ( ar, البيرة; also known historically as Castrum Mahomeria, Magna Mahomeria, Mahomeria Major, Birra, or Beirothah) is a State of Palestine, Palestinian city in the central West Bank, north of Jerusalem. It i ...
attacked the Benita family near the Lions' Gate
Lions' Gate ( he, שער האריות, Sha'ar ha-Arayot, Lions' Gate, ar, باب الأسباط, Bab al-Asbat, Gate of the Tribes), also St Stephen's Gate, is one of the seven open Gates of the Old City of Jerusalem. It leads into the Muslim Qua ...
in Jerusalem
Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...
, as they were on their way to the Western Wall
The Western Wall ( he, הַכּוֹתֶל הַמַּעֲרָבִי, HaKotel HaMa'aravi, the western wall, often shortened to the Kotel or Kosel), known in the West as the Wailing Wall, and in Islam as the Buraq Wall (Arabic: حَائِط ...
to pray. The attacker murdered Aaron Benita, the father of the family, and injured the mother Adele and their 2-year-old son Matan. Nehemia Lavi, a resident who heard screams and came to help was also murdered and his gun taken by the assailant. The attacker, 19 year old Muhanad Shafeq Halabi was shot and killed by police as he was firing on pedestrians.
Adele described Arab residents standing by and laughing as she was attacked, and telling her to "drop dead" when she pleaded for help for her son.
This attack and another stabbing attack, both of which took place during a religious festival that draws many Jews to the holy places in Jerusalem, resulted in Israeli authorities temporarily barring Arab residents of East Jerusalem from entering the walled Old City.
Background
The attack came during the 2015–2016 wave of violence in Israeli-Palestinian conflict regarded by ''The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'' as having begun in mid-September when a number of Palestinians "repeatedly barricaded themselves inside the al-Aqsa mosque and hurled stones, firebombs and fireworks at the police." This series of attacks against Israeli Jews is notable for consisting of what are being called "grassroots" attacks, often involving the throwing of Molotov cocktail
A Molotov cocktail (among several other names – ''see other names'') is a hand thrown incendiary weapon constructed from a frangible container filled with flammable substances equipped with a fuse (typically a glass bottle filled with flamma ...
s and rocks
In geology, rock (or stone) is any naturally occurring solid mass or aggregate of minerals or mineraloid matter. It is categorized by the minerals included, its chemical composition, and the way in which it is formed. Rocks form the Earth's ...
, lone wolf terrorism
A lone wolf attack, or lone actor attack, is a particular kind of mass murder, committed in a public setting by an individual who plans and commits the act on their own. In the United States, such attacks are usually committed with firearms. I ...
, stabbings and vehicular assault as a terrorist tactic. This is taking place during a period when terror attacks sponsored by organizations have declined.Anshel Pfeffer
Anshel Pfeffer (Hebrew: אנשיל פפר, born 22 June 1973) is a British-born Israeli journalist. He is a senior correspondent and columnist for '' Haaretz'', covering military, Jewish and international affairs, and Israel correspondent for ''Th ...Temple Mount
The Temple Mount ( hbo, הַר הַבַּיִת, translit=Har haBayīt, label=Hebrew, lit=Mount of the House f the Holy}), also known as al-Ḥaram al-Sharīf (Arabic: الحرم الشريف, lit. 'The Noble Sanctuary'), al-Aqsa Mosque compoun ...
. According to ''The Guardian'', many analysts regard the issue of access to what is known to Muslims as al-Haram al-Sharif, or the Noble Sanctuary, and to Jews as the Temple Mount
The Temple Mount ( hbo, הַר הַבַּיִת, translit=Har haBayīt, label=Hebrew, lit=Mount of the House f the Holy}), also known as al-Ḥaram al-Sharīf (Arabic: الحرم الشريف, lit. 'The Noble Sanctuary'), al-Aqsa Mosque compoun ...
, as key to the recent increase in tension in Jerusalem. A campaign by some fundamentalist Jews and their supporters, with the backing of some members of the Israeli cabinet, demanding greater rights for Jewish worship at the site has raised the suspicion, despite repeated Israeli denials, that Israel intends to change the 'precarious status quo' for the site. Writing in The Atlantic
''The Atlantic'' is an American magazine and multi-platform publisher. It features articles in the fields of politics, foreign affairs, business and the economy, culture and the arts, technology, and science.
It was founded in 1857 in Boston, ...
, Jeffrey Goldberg
Jeffrey Mark Goldberg (born September 22, 1965) is an American journalist and editor-in-chief of ''The Atlantic'' magazine. During his nine years at ''The Atlantic'' prior to becoming editor, Goldberg became known for his coverage of foreign affa ...
points to "Muslim supersessionism", the refusal of many Muslims to acknowledge that the Temple Mount is also holy to other faiths, and a parallel unwillingness to recognize that "Jews are a people who are indigenous to the land" of Israel.
3 October stabbing
Aaron and Adele Benita and their two small children in strollers, were on their way to theWestern Wall
The Western Wall ( he, הַכּוֹתֶל הַמַּעֲרָבִי, HaKotel HaMa'aravi, the western wall, often shortened to the Kotel or Kosel), known in the West as the Wailing Wall, and in Islam as the Buraq Wall (Arabic: حَائِط ...
to pray, when 19 year old Muhanad Shafeq Halabi from Al-Bireh started attacking and stabbing them, killing Aaron, critically wounding Adele and wounding 2 year old Matan, then stabbed Rabbi Nehemia Lavie who, hearing them scream for help, ran out of his house and tried to help them. During the assault, the attacker took a pistol from Lavie, and fired at pedestrians, until he was shot and killed by a police officer who had rushed to the scene.
Adele Benita described the horror of being stabbed, trying to help her husband, and screaming for help while, "There were lots of Arabs around looking ... laughing and smiling..." Benita told the New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...
that she, “Screamed, I begged for aid,” but, “They stood chatting and laughing — they spat at me.” As she ran past them to find help, Arab onlookers "spat at me and slapped me in the face. While the knife was still stuck in me they slapped me and laughed at me." As she pleaded for help, one of the Arab bystanders told her to, "drop dead."
Video
Reuters
Reuters ( ) is a news agency owned by Thomson Reuters Corporation. It employs around 2,500 journalists and 600 photojournalists in about 200 locations worldwide. Reuters is one of the largest news agencies in the world.
The agency was estab ...
broadcast video of the murders.
Victims
The dead were Aharon Benita, 21, and Nehemia Lavie, 41, who attempted to come to the couple's rescue. Lavie was a rabbi and military reserve officer who had lived for 23 years in the street where he was stabbed to death. The Lavies are one of about 70 Jewish families who live outside the Jewish Quarter of the Old City, mostly in the Muslim Quarter, which used to be a mixed neighborhood until the1929 Palestine riots
The 1929 Palestine riots, Buraq Uprising ( ar, ثورة البراق, ) or the Events of 1929 ( he, מאורעות תרפ"ט, , ''lit.'' Events of 5689 Anno Mundi), was a series of demonstrations and riots in late August 1929 in which a longst ...
.
Adele Banita and her small son were injured, Adele wounded seriously with stab wounds. Visiting Mrs. Benita in hospital along with Minister of Public Security Gilad Erdan
Gilad Menashe Erdan ( he, גִּלְעָד מְנַשֶּׁה אֶרְדָן, ; born 30 September 1970) is an Israelis, Israeli politician and diplomat serving as Permanent Representative of Israel to the United Nations since 2020.
Erdan previo ...
, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu
Benjamin "Bibi" Netanyahu (; ; born 21 October 1949) is an Israeli politician who served as the ninth prime minister of Israel from 1996 to 1999 and again from 2009 to 2021. He is currently serving as Leader of the Opposition and Chairman of ...
said: "Let's make this clear,"... "just as we’ve smashed previous waves of terrorism, we will also smash this wave of terrorism."
Assailant
The attacker was Muhannad Halabi, 19. He was a resident of East Jerusalem and a law student at Al Quds University. He is said to have been distraught over the death of a fellow student, Dia Talahma, 21, who died when a grenade he was throwing at Israeli troops exploded too soon. Halabi has been called “the lion,” and “the thunder” that unleashed the new uprising, on some Facebook pages. Before attacking, he wrote on hisFacebook
Facebook is an online social media and social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. Founded in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with fellow Harvard College students and roommates Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin M ...
page, "What's happening to our holy places? What's happening to our mothers and sisters in the Al-Aqsa mosque? We are not the people who accept humiliation. Our people will revolt." And, "the third intifada
An intifada ( ar, انتفاضة ') is a rebellion or uprising, or a resistance movement. It is a key concept in contemporary Arabic usage referring to a legitimate uprising against oppression.Ute Meinel ''Die Intifada im Ölscheichtum Bahrain: ...
has begun".
Copycat attacks
This widely publicized attack is understood to have "quickly sparked a spate of similar assaults."Subsequent October stabbings at the Lions Gate
On 4 October a male Palestinian teenager attacked 15-year-old Israeli Moshe Malka with a knife, wounding him before being shot and killed by police. The attacker was identified by relatives as Fadi Alloun (alt.: Alon), 19. Before attacking, he posted on his Facebook page: "Either martyrdom or victory." Palestinians cast doubts on the Israeli report that Alon tried to stab a Jew. Based on a video they claimed that a group of Jews attacked him and called on the police to shoot him without reason. According to theNew York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...
, the video shows Alon fleeing after he had, "stabbed and wounded," the 15-year-old Jewish boy, with Israeli civilians chasing him and yelling, “Shoot him!” Release of Alon's body for burial was delayed by Israel authorities after mourners called him a "martyr," and declared that his funeral would be, "a national celebration." Israel agreed to release the body for burial by a strictly limited number of mourners.
On 6 October, an 18-year-old woman attacked an Israeli man with a knife near the Lions' Gate. The victim was able to draw his gun and shoot his attacker. Both were hospitalized; both were expected to live. The attacker was Shurooq Dweiyat, 18, from the Palestinian neighborhood of Sur Baher
Sur Baher ( ar, صور باهر, he, צור באהר), also ''Tsur Baher'', is a Palestinian neighborhood on the southeastern outskirts of East Jerusalem. It is located east of Ramat Rachel and northeast of Har Homa. In 2006, Sur Baher had a p ...
, a student at Bethlehem University
Bethlehem University ( ar, جامعة بيت لحم) is a Catholic university in the city of Bethlehem in the West Bank, Palestine. It is the first university founded in the Occupied Palestinian Territories.
History
Established under Israeli ...
who began collecting donations for the families of "“martyrs" the week before she stabbed an Israeli. On the morning of the attack, she told friends that she was cutting class to pray at the Al Aqsa mosque. A video circulating widely among Palestinians shows Dweiyat being pounced on after the stabbing by police who found two knives in her possession; it does not show her stabbing the policeman. Ma'an news agency reported that witnesses saw an Israeli man opened fire at the teenager in the al-Wad Street in the Old City, a few meters away from the Council Gate leading to Al-Aqsa Mosque. They said she was assaulted by the Israeli man and subsequently was not found to have any sharp objects on her person.
On 12 October an Arab man approaching the Gate from the cemeteries outside the walls was asked to remove his hands from his pockets by police. He pulled out a knife and attacked the police officer, fellow officers quickly shot the assailant. The officer who was attacked was saved from harm by his bulletproof vest
A bulletproof vest, also known as a ballistic vest or a bullet-resistant vest, is an item of body armor that helps absorb the impact and reduce or stop penetration to the torso from firearm-fired projectiles and fragmentation from explosions. T ...
.
Response
* : Israelis PMBenjamin Netanyahu
Benjamin "Bibi" Netanyahu (; ; born 21 October 1949) is an Israeli politician who served as the ninth prime minister of Israel from 1996 to 1999 and again from 2009 to 2021. He is currently serving as Leader of the Opposition and Chairman of ...
said: "They want a third intifada? They'll get Defensive Shield 2".
* : Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process Nickolay Mladenov
Nikolay Evtimov Mladenov ( bg, Николай Евтимов Младенов; born 5 May 1972) is a Bulgarian politician and diplomat who served as Bulgaria's Minister of Defense from 27 July 2009 to 27 January 2010 and as the minister of fore ...
stated, "I condemn the brutal terror attack that killed two Israelis in Jerusalem, call on all to stand firm against incitement, prevent escalation."
* : United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon
Ban Ki-moon (; ; born 13 June 1944) is a South Korean politician and diplomat who served as the eighth secretary-general of the United Nations between 2007 and 2016. Prior to his appointment as secretary-general, Ban was his country's Minister ...
issued a statement: "The Secretary-General condemns in the strongest terms the attacks on Saturday, 3 October in the Old City of Jerusalem, including the killing of two members of an Israeli family and injuries to Israelis and Palestinians in subsequent incidents in various neighborhoods in Jerusalem."
* 's State Department said :"We call for all perpetrators of violence to be swiftly brought to justice, we are concerned about mounting tensions in the West Bank and Jerusalem, including the Haram al Sharif/Temple Mount, and call on all sides to take affirmative steps to restore calm and avoid escalating the situation."
* spokesman Ihab Bseiso said: "The only solution is the end of the Israeli occupation of our occupied Palestinian land and the establishment of our independent state on the 1967 borders with Jerusalem as its capital."
Impact
In response to the 3 October Lions' Gate stabbing, and to other recent attacks, in particular, to a stabbing attack in the early hours of 4 October in which a Palestinian teenager attacked a 15-year-old Israeli with a knife, wounding him before he, the assailant, was shot and killed by police. The attacker was identified by relatives as Fadi Alloun, 19. Before attacking, he posted on his Facebook page: "Either martyrdom or victory." Because of these and other recent attacks, the Israeli government temporarily barred Palestinians from entering the walledOld City Old City often refers to old town, the historic or original core of a city or town.
Old City may refer to several places:
Historical cities or regions of cities
''(by country)''
*Old City (Baku), Azerbaijan
* Old City (Dhaka), Bangladesh, also ca ...
of Jerusalem. The ban will be effective for two days, during the Jewish holy days of Sukkot
or ("Booths, Tabernacles")
, observedby = Jews, Samaritans, a few Protestant denominations, Messianic Jews, Semitic Neopagans
, type = Jewish, Samaritan
, begins = 15th day of Tishrei
, ends = 21st day of Tishre ...
when many Jews make pilgrimages to the city's holy places. Palestinians who live, study or work in the Old City are exempted form the ban.
Israeli security "flooded" the streets of the Old City following the first stabbing attack, according to a report in ''Haaretz
''Haaretz'' ( , originally ''Ḥadshot Haaretz'' – , ) is an Israeli newspaper. It was founded in 1918, making it the longest running newspaper currently in print in Israel, and is now published in both Hebrew and English in the Berliner f ...
'', whilst dozens demonstrated near the Al-Aqsa mosque in protest at the restrictions before Israeli forces dispersed the demonstration. Several were injured due to smoke inhalation.
Business owners in the Muslim Quarter and schools in East Jerusalem declared a strike.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lions' Gate stabbing Palestinian political violence Terrorist incidents involving knife attacks Terrorist incidents in Jerusalem Attacks in Asia in 2015 2015 in Jerusalem Stabbing attacks in 2015 October 2015 events in Asia Stabbing attacks in Israel Terrorist incidents in Jerusalem in the 2010s Terrorist incidents in Asia in 2015 2015 murders in Asia