Palestinian Stabs Israeli Policeman

A Palestinian stabbed an Israeli paramilitary policeman patrolling a road near the city of Shechem during Shabbos.

The incident came hours after the Israeli army said that another Palestinian was shot and wounded after stabbing a soldier at a highway checkpoint.

Police spokeswoman Luba Samri said a Palestinian approached officers conducting a routine security check and stabbed one in the back with a knife, moderately wounding him. An officer nearby opened fire and killed the attacker, identified by doctors at Rafidia hospital in Nablus as 21-year-old Rafeq Ahmad al-Taj.

Earlier the same day, a Palestinian was shot by Israeli troops after asking soldiers at a crossing for a glass of water, then stabbing the soldier who turned to get it, the military said.

The soldier was treated at the scene and the Palestinian was taken to a hospital with a light shoulder wound, the military said.

Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas condemned the shooting as a “grave escalation.”

Meanwhile, former Israel Security Agency (ISA or Shin Bet) chief Avi Dichter called for separate roads for Israeli and Palestinian Arab motorists on Sunday, in order to prevent further vehicular terror attacks. 

“This is a significant point politically, not only operationally,” Dichter said on Israel Radio. “Ultimately, we have to separate them.”

“They are there and we are here,” he continued. “You want to get to us? Pass the checkpoint with the all-clear that you are not carrying a weapon. If you are on our list of potential suspects, you can’t enter.” 

“The solution to the problem is the isolation or detachment of [Palestinian] areas,” he added, noting that potentially dangerous suspects passing from Shechem into Israel is “a real problem.”

This way, he said, “a Palestinian vehicle can’t get into an Israeli community, and Israeli vehicles cannot get into Palestinian settlements.” 

Dichter cited the integration of Route 443 as an example of how this policy has led to more attacks. 

This article appeared in print on page 9 of the August 17th, 2015 edition of Hamodia.