Leading Israeli Rabbi: Treat the Victim First, Not the Terrorist

A leading rabbinic figure in the ultra-orthodox community instructed paramedics to treat the victims first after an attack, regardless of the severity of the terrorist’s wounds.

Rabbi Chaim Kanievsky, a leading authority on Jewish law, instructed members of the orthodox United Hatzalah paramedics not to treat injured terrorists, Arutz 7 reported.

The highly respected ultra-orthodox rabbi’s instruction follows a controversial announcement earlier this month by the ethics committee of the Israel Medical Association (IMA) committee that patients should be prioritized for treatment according to the severity of the condition, with no consideration as to whether the injured person is the victim or the terrorist.

In response to the IMA ruling Rabbi Yehuda Meshi-Zahav, chairman of the orthodox ZAKA emergency response organization, stated: “In spite of the ethical code that says one should treat the most severely injured first, one should know that even morality has its boundaries. If we do not make this distinction, we lose our direction.”

Others, including Rabbi Yuval Cherlow, a member of the Health Ministry’s ethics committee, made a similar moral argument opposing the IMA’s decision.

Heads of United Hatzalah arrived at Rabbi Kanievsky’s home in B’nei Brak on Thursday, where he explained that when it is clear, after an attack, who among the wounded is the terrorist, paramedics must first treat the victims, even if the terrorist is in life-threatening condition, Arutz 7 said.

If, however, it is unclear who among the wounded is the terrorist, then all must be treated equally, Rabbi Kanievsky added.

By: United with Israel Staff
(With files from Arutz 7)