Yerushalayim Terrorist Had a Long History of Violence, Police Records Show

Amir Sidawi, the terrorist who carried out the terror shooting near the Old City of Yerushalayim early Sunday in which eight Jews were wounded, had a lengthy criminal record and has served time in prison before, according to police records.

The 26-year-old eastern Yerushalayim resident, who is believed to have acted alone, was suspected of murder in the past but was eventually convicted of grievous bodily harm in 2015 and sentenced to eight years in prison, of which he served five.

In August 2020, he was released from Hermon prison as part of an administrative release, after the parole board found that he underwent treatment that included, among other things, anger management workshops.

Sidawi turned himself in to the police later Sunday after law enforcement launched a massive, hours-long manhunt after him. He arrived at the capital’s Moriya police station by taxi with the gun he used to carry out the attack and a knife. The taxi driver was questioned by the police.

Sidawi’s arraignment is scheduled for later Sunday in the Yerushalayim Magistrate’s Court.

The terrorist opened fire at two different locations, first at a bus waiting in a parking lot near the Kosel. Two male passengers in their 30s sustained light to moderate injuries.

He then fled and opened fire again nearby, wounding another six people, four of them are members of a frum family from New York.

The wounded were taken to hospitals in the capital for treatment. Two of the victims were in serious condition, including a man with gunshot wounds to the head and neck and a woman with abdominal injuries.