Home | World and National News
Home
| World and National News
Another bulldozer attack in Jerusalem injures 16
By Griff Witte
Washington Post
Jul 23, 2008
JERUSALEM - In the second such attack this month, a Palestinian construction worker driving an earthmover went on a rampage yesterday afternoon on a busy Jerusalem street, injuring 16 people - one seriously - before being shot to death. The attack occurred only a block from the King David Hotel, where Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama was due to stay last night. Obama had not arrived at the time, and police said they did not believe there was any connection between the rampage and the senator's visit.
Still, the attack reinforced fears in Jerusalem, which until this spring had enjoyed four years of relative quiet. Just three weeks ago, another Palestinian construction worker used an earthmover to ram cars and buses, killing three people and wounding more than 40. In March, a gunman killed eight students in a rabbinical seminary.
In all three incidents, a Palestinian resident of mostly Arab East Jerusalem crossed into predominantly Jewish West Jerusalem to carry out an attack. In each case, the Palestinian had an Israeli identity card that permitted him to work in Israel.
The attacks have ignited debate in Israel over whether more restrictions should be placed on Palestinian residents of East Jerusalem - a challenge for a city that has not been physically divided since 1967. Israel captured East Jerusalem that year and later annexed it, though the move has not been internationally recognized.
Yesterday's assailant was identified as Ghassan Abu Teir, 22, who had been operating the earthmover at the nearby construction site of a luxury apartment complex.
At his East Jerusalem home, family members said they were in shock. "He has no political affiliation," said a cousin, Mustafa Abu Teir. "All he does is work." He said his cousin was a religious man who had dropped out of school after eighth grade to get a job.
Witnesses described him driving fast and with apparent intent to destroy the vehicles in his path. At just after 2 p.m., he rammed a bus and tried to turn it over with the earthmover's mechanical arm. When that failed, witnesses said, he went after passenger cars, crushing a small white subcompact, flipping over a silver sedan, and damaging two other vehicles.
His path of destruction extended 150 yards down King David Street, a bustling thoroughfare lined with upscale shops, the historic YMCA, and the stately hotel, where scores of U.S. politicians and visiting heads of state have stayed.
"Everyone was in a panic," said Yohanan Levin, 16, who had been walking home from school. "I looked at his face," he said of Abu Teir. "He had come to kill."
Abu Teir's rampage ended when a reserve-duty Israeli military officer, Yaakov Asael, 53, got out of his car and shot him dead, police said.
Obama, in Jordan, condemned the attack, calling it "a reminder of what Israelis have courageously lived with on a daily basis for far too long."
Copyright 2008
Powered By Zebra Mobile
