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Osama Khaled Joudeh received a PA medal for helping victims of the deadly Vienna attack in November, but a Palestinian man who helped Jewish victims of a shooting attack near Hebron received death threats and had to flee for his life.
By Nan Jacques Zilberdik and Itamar Marcus, Palestinian Media Watch
The Palestinian Authority (PA) claims it’s against terror everywhere. But there is one exception: When Palestinian terror targets Israelis.
Two similar incidents illustrate this.
When a Palestinian man recently helped a victim during a terror attack in Austria he was awarded a medal by PA Chairman Abbas, and everyone sang his praise.
But when another Palestinian and his wife helped Israeli terror victims who had been shot at in their car, the man received death threats, was fired, and was ostracized by Palestinian society.
Earlier this month, Osama Khaled Joudeh helped an Austrian police officer who was shot and wounded in the recent shooting attack in Vienna by an Islamist terrorist. PA Chairman Abbas reacted by awarding him a medal and praising him, while he emphasized that the Palestinian people as a whole “fights against terror”:
“The president expressed his appreciation for Joudeh’s courage, which served as an example for the young Palestinians who are defending the noble values and expressing our people’s opposition to all forms of terror. The president said: ‘You give us pride, and enable us to tell the world that this is the Palestinian people, which is fighting against terror and defending people. Therefore, we have decided to award you with a medal of honor as a sign of appreciation for your courage,’” reported the official PA daily Al-Hayat Al-Jadida.
However, when a Palestinian man and his wife stopped and helped Jewish victims of a shooting attack, the man received death threats, was fired from his job, called “a traitor,” and had to flee the PA and start a new life in Israel.
In July 2016, Rabbi Miki Mark was shot and murdered while driving with his wife and two of their children near Hebron. Seeing their overturned car, an unnamed Palestinian and his wife stopped to help. They pulled Rabbi Mark’s wife and children from the car and treated their wounds, saving the life of Rabbi Mark’s wife, Chavi, who had been shot in the head, and waited with them until an ambulance arrived, protecting them in case the terrorists returned to hurt or kidnap them.
However, the PA didn’t award the rescuer a medal of honor or protect him, and Palestinian society didn’t welcome this act of humanity. On the contrary, the unnamed rescuer immediately began receiving threats, his house was shot at, he was fired from his job, and ostracized from Palestinian society as a “collaborator” and “traitor.” As a result he had to escape to Israel, leaving his wife and child behind in the PA.
In Israel he was at first given a temporary stay permit, but eventually the anonymous rescuer received permanent residency, a work permit, an apartment and was reunited with his wife and child who joined him in Israel.
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