On Tuesday, Israeli sources said a man was moderately injured after a Palestinian reportedly stabbed him on a bus near Ramot, in occupied Jerusalem, and was rushed to a hospital in the city. The Palestinian was also shot and moderately injured.
The sources said the Israeli man, 41 years of age, suffered moderate wounds when he was stabbed with a screwdriver in the head by a Palestinian who was on the same bus near Ramot Junction.
They added that the injured Israeli was transferred to Shaare Zedek Medical center in Jerusalem, where the doctors treated him and described his wounds as non-threatening.
The Palestinian, identified as Ismael Nimir, 44, from the central West Bank city of Ramallah, fled the bus before he was shot and moderately injured by an Israeli passerby, identified as Meshi Ben Ami, who is also a photographer for the Israeli daily Ynetnews, shortly before Israeli police officers arrived at the scene.
Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid issued a statement wishing a “speedy recovery for the wounded Israeli” and hailing the “photojournalist for shooting and neutralizing the Palestinian.”
It was later revealed the suspected Palestinian stabber, contrary to initial reports, did not carry a BMC Permit (businessman card allowing him to move freely and even travel through Israeli airports) but “carried an ordinary permit to enter Israel.”
The Israeli reports revealed that his brother is the person who holds a BMC permit given to certain Palestinian businesspeople who also have business in Israel.
This type of permit also allows the few Palestinian businesspeople who carry it to drive through military roadblocks on their way to Jerusalem and various parts of the country.
While many Israeli reports claimed the incident was “nationally motivated” and labeled it as a “terrorist attack,” the motives remain unclear, and the police said it is investigating the circumstances of the incident, while the Jerusalem District Commander, Doron Turgeman, held an assessment at the scene.
Israeli Public Security Minister Omer Barlev, who oversees the police, described the incident as a “serious terrorist attack” and said the Israeli security agencies and the police would continue to work and cooperate to prevent such attacks.
