Saturday night, shortly before the conclusion of the Sabbath, a Jewish man walking near the Damascus Gate in Jerusalem was stabbed in the back of the neck. Authorities are labeling this a terrorist attack. The man remains in moderate, but stable condition.
National Police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said that the attack was without provocation: “It is clear to us that it was a terrorist attack and not a criminal incident.” The assailant fled the scene quickly after stabbing the victim. The victim was rushed to Shaare Zedek Medical Center where he underwent emergency surgery. Police forces in Jerusalem immediately set up a search for the assailant near the Muslim Quarter of the Old City and the street near the Damascus Gate.
The recent attack is one in a wave of terrorist activity taking place in Israel over the last month. The Shin Bet reported that terror was on the uptick in Israel as peace negotiations have gotten underway.
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry recently visited Israel to broker peace between the Israel and the Palestinian Authority. As a sign of goodwill, Israel released 26 Palestinian terrorists from prison. Back home, these murderers were hailed as heroes. Kerry has asked both Israeli and Palestinian leadership to put aside their differences and settle on common ground to create an everlasting peace.
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas reaffirmed Saturday his refusal to recognize Israel as a Jewish State. He also stated that he would not accept any peace agreement that does not include East Jerusalem as the capital for a future Palestinian state. Abbas said that the current peace negotiations will continue for a period of nine months and “After that, we are free to do what we want. The talks are limited to this period.”
“We don’t love death, but we welcome martyrdom if it happens,” Abbas declared. “We will march to Jerusalem in the millions, as free people and heroes.”
Abbas also stated that he would only accept a state based on the 1967 borders. “We will have our own borders and we have nothing to lease,” he explained. “No one can deceive us.”
