In North Jerusalem, a Palestinian drove his car into a group of female officers, injuring four of them. One was lightly hurt, but the three others were more seriously injured. After hitting the women, who were not within the precincts of the Police Station, the attacker continued to drive for about 300 meters until he hit a cyclist in a light train rail station. The Israeli man on the bicycle, along with the five injured officers, was treated by the paramedics who arrived in very short time at the spot on the accident. The aggressor, who is probably from East Jerusalem, was shot and severely wounded by a Border Guard who happened to be there because he was performing a training exercise. The terrorist was carrying a butcher knife, which he tried to use against the forces after the car collision.
The fortunate intervention of the Border Guard was possible because the attack occurred very close to a Border Police base, on HaTzadik Street, a place where another hit-and-run attack happened in November 2014, killing one Border Police Officer and injuring 13 people. In the interval between the two vehicle terror-attacks, several other instances of violence have been registered in Jerusalem, the latest being the stabbing of an ultra-Orthodox man by an Arab teen on February 22. This incident happened in Safra Square, but the Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat, who was there with his security guard, intervened to stop it.
The Mayor took a very decisive stand against the threat of terrorism, promising that the authorities (and the people along with them) will not let terror become a hindrance to their daily lives and promising to refuse compromise in fighting its agents. He expressed his gratitude towards citizens, guards, and police, who helped in capturing the aggressor and thus avoided the possibility of his hurting even more persons. “Our response to terror is to continue on with our routine”, Mayor Nir Barkat stated, as he announced the continuation of all Purim events in Jerusalem according to the pre-established schedule. The condition of proceeding with the festivities, as the mayor acknowledged, is to increase security in the entire city, particularly in Safra Square, where the main Purim celebration event will take place in a closed and guarded location. In order to boost confidence, he officially invited all the residents of Israel to celebrate the Jewish festivity in Jerusalem.
image source: ynet news