Jerusalem attack: 8-year-old dies day after brother killed, father in serious condition

Two children and a young man were killed and four others were injured in a terrorist ramming attack near the Ramot neighborhood of Jerusalem on Friday afternoon.

The terrorist, identified as Hossein Karaka, a 31-year-old resident of the Isawiya neighborhood of east Jerusalem, rammed into a bus stop at the entrance to the Ramot neighborhood.

An off-duty police officer and other officers who arrived at the scene quickly after the attack shot the terrorist.

A Facebook account reportedly belonging to the terrorist featured a series of posts in recent months glorifying Hezbollah and Palestinian terrorists, including a post calling the terrorist who conducted a shooting attack at the Shuafat checkpoint last year a "hero."

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu decided shortly after the attack to seal and demolish Karaka's home, expressing his condolences to the families of the victims.

"I conducted a security situation assessment and ordered security forces reinforced, arrests made and to act immediately to seal the terrorist's house and demolish it. Our answer to terrorism is to strike it with all our might and deepen our grip on our country even more."

The terrorist had recently been released from a psychiatric hospital, Ynet reported on Friday evening citing a political official. The report also stated that the vehicle used in the attack belonged to the terrorist's wife.

The official further told Ynet that the terrorist lived in a rented apartment. "We are legally checking what can be done against a terrorist who lives in a rented house. We want to make sure that we operate within the law and do not punish a family that rented out a house," he said.

About three hours after the attack, police forces closed off the area around the home of the terrorists' family in Isawiya. Ten family members of the terrorist including his wife, parents, siblings and his landlord were arrested. They were transferred for questioning and their connection to the attack will be investigated.

The names of the victims

The 20-year-old victim was identified as Alter Shlomo Laderman, who got married just two months ago.

The 6-year-old victim was identified as Yaakov Israel Pally, resident of the Ramot neighborhood in Jerusalem. His family decided to hold a private funeral on Friday, before the beginning of Shabbat, following advice to do so.

Yaakov's brother, Asher, succumbed to his injuries on Saturday evening after extensive efforts to save his life at Shaare Zedek Medical Center.

"This is a very difficult scene, a terrorist who violently crashed into a bus station where there were many families," said ZAKA member Dovi Weinstern. "When I arrived there I saw a lot of commotion, difficult images of people and children dressed in Shabbat clothes lying near the station suffering from serious injuries, cries for help from all sides."

"Once again we are dealing with a serious incident of injury to innocents, a brutal attack on Friday afternoon against civilians who were waiting at a bus stop."

National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir arrived at the scene shortly after the attack, saying "There are no events more difficult than these. I thank the prime minister for adopting my policy to seal the house as quickly as possible. I also ordered the police to place checkpoints around Isawiya and to stop each vehicle, to check each car."

Ben-Gvir added that he wanted to implement a full lockdown on the Isawiya neighborhood, but was unable to due to legal questions surrounding such a decision.

The minister additionally stated that he wants to advance the death penalty for terrorists and plans to advance a law next week allowing police to search houses without warrants.

"Enough with the approach that 'if we do something we'll make them angry.' Enough! There are terrorist attacks now," said Ben-Gvir after reporters began asking him about how he would respond to the attack.

Later in the afternoon, Ben-Gvir announced that he had instructed police to prepare to launch "Operation Defensive Shield 2" on Sunday to target terrorist activities in east Jerusalem.

The announcement drew harsh criticism, with senior political officials telling Israeli media that "decisions about Operation Defensive Shield are not made on the sidewalk at a bus station when there's a terrorist attack." A security official told Ynet that no such operation had been coordinated with the prime minister or the defense minister.

President Isaac Herzog responded to the attack on Friday afternoon, stating "a moment before the start of Shabbat our hearts ache with terrible pain after a despicable terrorist took the lives of a small boy and a young man in a ramming attack in Jerusalem. Together with all the people of Israel, I feel the pain of the families and pray for the healing of the wounded."

He ended the statement with a prayer of healing and a call of support to Israel's security forces.

Jerusalem Mayor Moshe Lion thanked security forces for their work in investigating the incident, adding "the heart aches in the face of the difficult sights. A despicable terrorist takes the lives of innocent children and adults just because they are Jewish. This is another event that points to a tense period that requires vigilance."

After the attack, the Jerusalem municipality decided to increase protective measures at bus stations in the city.

The Eran association, which provides emotional aid, announced that it was reinforcing its phone and internet hotlines in order to provide help for those needing it.

Hours after the attack, Defense Minister Yoav Galant decided to impose financial sanctions on 87 terrorists and their families who are residents of east Jerusalem. Galant signed seizure orders for funds totaling millions of shekels belonging to Israeli security prisoners who receive payments from the Palestinian Authority as a reward for their involvement in terrorism.