Officials Praise Elimination of Murderer of Rabbi Shevach, Hy”d

Political and military officials congratulated security forces on the elimination Tuesday of the terrorist who murdered Rabbi Raziel Shevach, Hy”d, last month. Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu said that the elimination of Ahmad Jarrar was “a brave and complicated operation.

“Israeli forces will reach all terrorists who try to harm Israelis and make them pay for their actions. The same will happen to the murderers of Rabbi Itamar Ben-Gal, Hy”d,” – the Israeli who was murdered in a terror stabbing attack near Ariel Monday – said Netanyahu.

Jarrar, who murdered Rabbi Shevach in early January in a drive-by shooting near Chavat Gilad in central Shomron, was holed up in a dilapidated structure in the village of Yamoun in northern Shomron. The Shin Bet said in a statement that security forces surrounded the structure, and Jarrar ran outside, brandishing an M-16 weapon and several bombs. He was shot on the spot. No injuries were reported among security forces. Numerous accomplices who helped Jarrar carry out the attack have been arrested in recent weeks.

Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman said that “the account is closed. I congratulate security forces for their successful operation. It was clear that it was just a matter of time until the head of this gang would be eliminated. I hope and believe we will soon be able to find the murderer of Rabbi Ben-Gal, Hy”d.”

Speaking to Army Radio, Yael Shevach, the almanah of Rabbi Shevach, Hy”d, said that she was glad that the murderer of her husband had been eliminated, but that she had mixed feelings “due to the fact of another murder at the same time,” referring to the stabbing murder of Rabbi Ben-Gal Monday. While she was grateful that her husband’s murderer was eliminated, “the problem has not been solved. We eliminated one, but what about the ones that are already waiting to murder Jews? The army had to search for the murderer of my husband after the fact. The root of the problem is still out there,” she added.