U.S. native living in Israel slain by Palestinian in West Bank

New York Daily News

A New York City native living in Israel was fatally stabbed while shopping in a West Bank supermarket by a Palestinian assailant Sunday morning.

Ari Fuld, 45, was a staunch supporter of the Israeli government and the Israel Defense Forces.

The father of four was stabbed in the back by Khalil Jabarin, a 17-year-old Palestinian from the village of Yatta, close to Hebron, according to Israeli media.

Mr. Fuld, bleeding from his wound, managed to chase his attacker and shoot the fleeing teen, video surveillance from the store close to the Gush Etzion settlement shows.

“He lived a hero and died a hero,” Mr. Fuld’s brother Hillel Fuld told the New York Daily News.

Khalil was brought to Hadassah Hospital Mount Scopus, where he is being treated for multiple gunshot wounds, according to hospital officials. He’s in moderate condition, the hospital staff said.

While living in the New York City borough of Queens, Mr. Fuld attended S.A.R. Academy, a modern Orthodox yeshiva in the Bronx borough, where his father was the principal.

Friend Uri Pillichowski remembered Mr. Fuld as a “warrior” who “fought for Israel on the battlefield and in the media.”

“He loved the land of Israel and its people …,” he said on Facebook. “He gave his life to Israel. He knew he could make a difference and he set out to do so.”

In Israel, Mr. Fuld, who lived in Efrat, would often deliver care packages of food and other goodies to Israeli soldiers on the front lines.

He was never afraid to confront critics of the Israeli government or Palestinian supporters. His Facebook account was sometimes suspended.

“He did not hold back on his opinions,” settler spokesman Josh Hasten told The Associated Press. “If that meant 30 days of Facebook jail, so be it.”

Political officials also hailed Mr. Fuld.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Mr. Fuld “heroically” battled his assailant and lived as “an advocate for Israel who fought to spread the truth.”

David Friedman, U.S. ambassador to Israel, noted Mr. Fuld was a vocal backer of the Israeli settlements and called him “a passionate defender of Israel and an American patriot.”

Close friends mourned Mr. Fuld’s death.

“Ari is the last person you’d think would be attacked as he was always visibly armed and terrorists tend to shy away from armed civilians,” Eddie Dvir posted on Facebook.

Mr. Fuld would frequently share information with Mr. Dvir about terror attacks.

“We are all in shock,” Mr. Dvir said. “May his memory forever be for a blessing.”

A GoFundMe page has been created to help raise money for Mr. Fuld’s family. The site raised $93,812 within seven hours of its launch.