Firefighters at the scene of the attack. (Sliman Khader/Flash90)
The Israeli leadership demands that the world condemn terror against Israelis, which is most often the case, as it does when Palestinians are the victims.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday visited terror victim Inbar Azrak at Hadassah Ein Kerem Medical Center in the Israeli capital. She is suffering from burns sustained during an attack in northern Jerusalem the previous evening, when a Palestinian terrorist threw a firebomb at the car she was driving. Two other Israelis were also injured in the attack.
Netanyahu demanded that the world condemn terror against Israelis and Jews just as it denounces violence against Palestinians.
“Terrorism is terrorism is terrorism. Our policy is zero tolerance for terrorism, and it does not matter where it comes from. We condemn it and we fight it to the same degree,” Netanyahu stated after the hospital visit.
President Reuven Rivlin calls terror victim. (GPO)
“Several days ago the international community joined in my condemnation of terrorism directed against Arabs, and I expect that they will similarly join in vis-à-vis terrorism directed against Jews. I am still waiting.”
The US, European Union (EU) and UN all joined in issuing harsh condemnations for the arson incident that claimed the life of an 18-month-old Palestinian baby last Friday.
President Reuven Rivlin called Azrak on Tuesday to inquire about her health and wish her a speedy recovery. Azrak, a 27-year-old mother of three, is contending with second- and third-degree burns on 25 percent of her body.
Rivlin: Israelis ‘Will Not Live in Fear’
“I spoke now with Inbar, who is suffering in severe pain, who bravely survived a horrific terror attack when a Molotov cocktail was thrown at her car yesterday evening,” Rivlin said after the conversation. “Despite the difficulty of her injuries, she explained to me how her heart has been warmed by the outpouring of love and support she has received… She told me of the dedicated and professional care she has received from the hospital staff and of what she called the ‘beauty of the people of Israel.’”
“I said to Inbar that we will stop the terror and the terrorists, our enemies, who harmed her and the dear people who went to her aid,” the president continued. “This is our duty. The citizens of Israel will not live in fear for their lives, and will not change their way of life in the face of the raised sword of terror. The State of Israel is duty-bound to defend the safety of its citizens – this is our obligation, not just our right. The eradication of terrorism is a moral duty, the duty to preserve life. Miraculously, the terror attack yesterday did not claim a life, but this does not alter its seriousness. The State of Israel must show an iron fist against those who wish it, and its citizens, ill. Israel must ensure that its citizens are able to live in safety, in every part of the land.”
By: Max Gelber, United with Israel