Two-Year-Old Hurt in Stone-Throwing in Yerushalayim

A two-year-old Jewish child suffered moderate to serious head injuries from a rock-throwing attack in the Armon Hanatziv, or East Talpiot, area of Yerushalayim on Thursday evening, according to media reports.

Police were searching the area for the perpetrators and said they believe it was a terrorist attack, according to spokesman Mickey Rosenfeld. He added that stones were thrown on Thursday at a number of vehicles in the area.

Magen David Adom EMS workers treated the girl at the scene on Asher Weiner Street and then evacuated her to Hadassah University Medical Center.

MDA personnel said that the toddler was in moderate to serious condition and not fully conscious when they arrived at the scene but that her condition improved en route to the hospital.

The girl was riding in the back seat of her family’s car with her two brothers when the attack occurred.

Paramedic Raphael Herbest told Ynet, “When we arrived at the scene, we saw the infant was bleeding at the head. She was lethargic… We were told she was hit with a large stone … while she was in a car.

“We immediately started treating her and evacuated her. During treatment, she started to regain consciousness.”

The victim’s grandfather said: “I was coming back from out of town and my daughter called me and told me that stones were thrown at her and that my granddaughter was hit. They threw a 1.5-kilogram stone. My daughter and my three grandchildren were out in a park and were on their way home to light Chanukah candles.”

Mayor Nir Barkat called for toughening criminal sanctions on stone-throwers. Barkat also visited the child in the hospital and spoke with her family.

“It must be made clear to everyone that a stone is a weapon for all intents and purposes,” Barkat said Thursday.

On Wednesday, five Arab youths were indicted at Yerushalayim Magistrate Court after being arrested last week in east Yerushalayim on charges of hurling Molotov cocktails at the IDF base, Ofrit, adjacent to Hebrew University.

This article appeared in print on page 1 of the November 29th, 2013 edition of Hamodia.