Terrorist went looking to kill soldier

The terrorist drove up and down the road, hunting for his target. Although the bus stop near the settlement of Ofra had protective bollards and cement blocks, the assailant, Malik Hamad, a 22-year-old resident of the Palestinian village of Silwad, found a vulnerable spot and rammed his car into the two IDF soldiers standing there.

The attack killed Sgt. Elchai Te har lev from the settlement of Talmon. His friend sustained light injuries. MDA paramedic Ilan Klein, who

was among the first responders to the scene, said Ta har lev was not breathing and had no pulse when he arrived, and he could only pronounce his death.”

According to the Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency), Hamad was imprisoned for four months after being caught trying to infiltrate the settlement of Adam in 2015.

The rest of the circumstances are still under investigation, including whether Hamad is a member of Hamas or a sympathizer.

On Thursday afternoon, the IDF froze his family’s work permits, and security forces interrogated his relatives members.

Malik’s uncle, Abu Dhiab Hamid, said he believes that the incident was a car accident and not a terrorist attack. Hamid explained that Malik went to work with his father and had left early to go home.

Ofra residents called for Hamad’s home to be demolished and for action to be taken against his village.

Security forces must “use an iron fist against the hostile village [Silwad] that educates hatred and murder of Jews and which has produced a long line of Jewish murderers over the years,” an Ofra resident said.

Hamas spokesman Hazem Qassim praised the attack on Facebook, saying that “the Jerusalem intifada is continuing its work, which will only end with freedom. Once again, the Jerusalem intifada proves that it isn’t a passing event, but rather a Palestinian decision to continue the struggle until freedom from occupation.”

On Saturday, a police officer was moderately wounded and two civilians were lightly wounded in a stabbing attack in Jerusalem’s Old City by a 17-year-old Palestinian assailant.

Last week, Shin Bet chief Nadav Argaman warned the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee that the current calm is “deceptive” and that Hamas and other organized terrorist groups will try to carry out attacks over Passover and Easter. •