A Second Arab Attack via Bulldozer in Jerusalem

בס''ד
Copyright © 2008, R. Kossover
First published at Blogcritics Magazine

Author's Note: About an hour after this article was published, my wife called. She was able to get the SIM card into her phone and so her phone was again in order. She is safe.

She will be able to downtown from the Central Bus Station, which is northwest of the city center. But those who live in the south of the city, neighborhoods like the German Colony, Greek Colony, Armon haNetziv, etc., will have far more difficulty going through Keren haYesod, which goes towards the center of town near Hotel Row.

Traffic on the streets west of Keren haYesod near Government Hill, Gan Soccer, and the Wolfson Medical Center will be maddeningly slow. The injured have mostly been taken to Sha'are Tzedek Hospital, where I was treated for a heart attack some years back.

Ma'ale Levona, 15:45

Reports came into us here in Ma'ale Levona first via cell phone, then via Arutz Sheva, then via Ha'aretz of a second Arab "bulldozer" attack. Fortunately, at this writing, around 15:45, Israel Summer Time, no one has been killed, thank G-d.

According to the cell phone report, a young man checking the Hebrew Internet at 14:20 reported five injured at the intersection of King David Street and Keren haYesod Street. This is right near hotel row in central Jerusalem, and from this information alone, it appears that these attacks are a concerted attempt to drive away tourists during what has been, up until now, a record breaking year for tourism in this country. A friend of my son reports that it is impossible presently to get to the Central Bus Station from central Jerusalem. My wife is also in Jerusalem, on her way to the Central Bus Station having to pass north through Keren haYesod Street. Her cell phone is out of order, so we are out of contact.

According to Arutz Sheva, "The terrorist began his attempt to murder Jews on King David St. near the Yemin Moshe neighborhood. He took a tractor from a construction site, and began plowing into vehicles along the street, hitting three cars and a bus. When he reached the intersection of Keren HaYesod St., a citizen and Border Guard policeman shot and killed him. The entire incident was over very quickly, eyewitnesses said."

The head of Manhigut Yehudit faction of the Likud, Moshe Feiglin, also witnessed this attack. He said that his first impression of the attack was the tractor-shovel attempting to drop down upon a passerby. "At first I thought it was some kind of accident, but very quickly we realized that it was an attack. Thank G-d, it ended very quickly, because of the alertness of a passersby who shot him - I saw a man I know from the southern Judea community of Susia, but he was the first one to shoot the terrorist, and then the Border Guard policeman came and finished the story."

The man who first shot the terrorist was later announced to be Yaki Asael, 56, father of eight, from Susia, according to Arutz Sheva.

Ha'aretz reports "Driver shot dead; 16 hurt, one in serious condition." Note that the headline from Ha'aretz is careful not to call this a terror attack.

Further updates will come when I find out more news.

This update came in at 15:50 from Rabbi Rahamim Pauli, as an e-mail to me and others:

Moments ago I was on the phone with my cousin, he told me that another bulldozer attack occurred in Yerushalayim.

This time the attack was near the Gan Hapalmon or Liberty Bell Park. The Park is right between the Sheridan Hotel/Heichel Shlomo and Migdal David in the old City not far from the main post office and the interior ministry in Yerushalayim.

This time it was a smaller bulldozer as it was not a road-work earth moving massive bulldozer. Again the driver was shot first by a civilian and then by a border policeman. The regular policemen just aren't there in time. The attack occurred around 14:30 local time.