Misplaced Pages

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Jalapenos do exist (talk | contribs) at 18:21, 27 December 2009 (→Palestinian Authority response). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

The killing of Rabbi Meir Hai by Palestinian Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades militants occurred on 24 December 2009 in the West Bank.

Incident

Hai (also spelled Chai), a 45-year-old Israeli kindergarten teacher and father of seven, was driving in his minivan on Highway 57, between the Israeli settlements of Shavei Shomron (where he resided) and Einav. A Palestinian car overtook him and someone in the car shot him in the head, apparently with an automatic weapon. Hai was pronounced dead at the scene by Magen David Adom paramedics.

While in 2002 and 2003, Palestinian drive-by shootings of Israeli settlers were almost common in the West Bank, Hai was the first person killed by Palestinian militants in the territory since 13 April 2009, when 13-year-old Shlomo Nativ was stabbed to death near his home in the Gush Etzion settlement of Bat Ayin.

According to an anonymous Israel Defense Forces officer, the attack occurred a week after Israel removed a roadblock from the road, and the attackers apparently fled through the point where the roadblock previously stood.

Initial statements

The Imad Mughniyeh Group, a little-known affiliate of the Al Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades, the armed wing of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas' Fatah party, claimed responsibility for the attack. The group said its members "withdrew from the area safely." It also warned of "a series of attacks to come."

The Yesha Council stated that "the murderous shooting attack in Samaria is a direct result of the policy of lifting restrictions on the Palestinians, removal of necessary road blocks in Judea and Samaria and the transfer of the responsibility for security to those whose ranks produced many terrorists who murdered Jews. As in the case of similar incidents in the past, once again the gestures aimed at Abu Mazen carry a price tag of Jewish blood."

Israeli Interior Minister Eli Yishai, Justice Minister Yaakov Neeman, and Members of Knesset Yaakov Katz and Uri Ariel attended Hai's funeral. Yishai stated that "Hundreds and thousands of children are crying over the loss of the rabbi," referring to the Jewish learning institutes Hai had set up.

Israeli Member of Knesset Michael Ben-Ari, from the far-right National Union party, said that "the path of capitulation, the opening of arteries, the freeze and the release of prisoners that Netanyahu has brought down upon us signals to terrorists that Jewish blood is negligible. The terrorist probably thinks that he will be released in the next exchange."

Israeli response

On 26 December, IDF Duvdevan Unit and Nahshon Battalion troops conducted an operation in separate locations in Nablus to locate three of the Fatah Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades operatives who were determined by the Shin Bet to be behind the attack: Raghsan Abu Sharah, Raed a-Sarkaji and Anan Sabah. The fourth suspect reportedly turned himself in to Israeli authorities prior to the operation.

Short confrontations took place at the homes of Abu Sharah and a-Sarkaji. IDF forces used different methods including shots in the air in order to make the two surrender. Both refused, though Abu Sharah sent out his wife. In the third location, where Sabah was staying, a several-hour-long standoff included the firing of an antitank missile toward the house, in an attempt to force Sabah out. All three were shot dead by Israeli troops following their refusal to surrender.

An M-16 rifle siezed from Sabah was later identified by a police forensics lab as the weapon used in the attack. Sabah had been released from an Israeli prison as part of the amnesty deal with the Palestinian Authority in 2007, in which Israel agreed not to hunt down Palestinian gunmen who agreed to lay down their arms.

Major Peter Lerner, spokesman for Israel’s Central Command stated that all three had been involved in anti-Israel violence in the past through activities in the Aksa Martyrs Brigades.

The following day, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated at the start of the weekly cabinet meeting: "I want to praise the Shin Bet and the IDF on the speedy operation against the cell which murdered Rabbi Meir Hai. Our policy against terrorism is clear. We will continue to respond aggressively - against any attack on Israeli citizens and against any firing of rockets or missiles at Israeli territory."

Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad condemned the operation as an "assassination" and "an attempt to target the state of security and stability that the Palestinian Authority has been able to achieve."

The Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades threatened a quick response to the operation, stating: "This is a despicable ... We will not stand idly by and the holy warriors' blood will not be shed in vain. The enemy will see nothing but the language of blood and fire. It will pay for the crime … the response will be quick."

Palestinian Authority response

On 25 December, the Palestinian Authority stated that its security forces had rounded up, interrogated and released some 150 suspects in connection with the attack. According to an Israel Radio report, most of the suspects were residents of Tulkarem, and two of them were still being interrogated as of 25 December.

Sources in the IDF lauded the conduct of the Palestinian security establishment in connection with the killing, calling it "determined and impressive."

See also

• Palestinian political violence
• Civil defense in Israel

References

1. ^ Father of seven shot dead in West Bank terror attack, Jerusalem Post 25-12-2009
2. ^ Ethan Bronner, Israeli Military Kills 6 Palestinians, New York Times 26-12-2009
3. ^ IDF officer: Israel recently removed road block from site of fatal attack, Ha'aretz 24-12-2009
4. ^ PA arrests, releases 150 attack suspects, Jerusalem Post 25-12-2009
5. Police identify gun seized in IDF operation as instrument of Chai's murder, Jerusalem Post 27-12-2009
6. ^ IDF lauds PA security establishment for conduct after Thursday shooting, Ynet News 26-12-2009
7. Rifle seized in Nablus raid linked to settler's murder, Ynet News 27-12-2009
8. PM praises IDF, Shin Bet for Nablus raid, Jerusalem Post 27-12-2009
9. Aksa Martyrs' Brigade slams IDF Nablus op, threatens to respond quickly, Jerusalem Post 26-12-2009

• Israeli-Palestinian conflict
• 2009 in the Palestinian territories