Jerusalem has declared a State of Emergency. This morning, a terrorist from east jerusalem decided to earn the sad, sick, and bizarre award of the year for using a bulldozer to drive over pedestrians, cars, and bicycles, and flip over two buses on his way to further violence at the mahane yehuda market. Before he could inflict further damage, he was shot dead by an off-duty IDF officer near the old Shaare Tzedek medical centre.
From my memory, this is the first such trampling terrorist attack in jerusalem. We're supposed to be in the midst of a tahdiyah, a lull in the conflict. We're supposed to be working towards a durable peace. We're probably the closest that we've ever been to actualizing just that. It's violent events like this that come out of nowhere and act as tests of the patience and resolve of hopeful israelis. Personally, I'm hoping that this was the act of one random deeply disturbed man who was only acting on behalf of himself as a psychotic individual with maybe some form of the well coined "jerusalem syndrome" compounded by some pre-existing mental illness. He could also be somebody too weak and susceptible to the inciting efforts of the terrorist groups and their recruiters. Words can cause damage. As for concerns over a political motivation for the act, I present to the unfortunate supporters of terrorism a plea to reconsider your means and methods. Wreaking death and destruction only leads to a joint dystopia. Let's not let it reach that. Place your violence and incitement aside and place your faith in joint concessions and negotiation. Two weeks of partial quiet are not enough.
I want to believe that our palestinian negotiating partners are serious and haven't sent out members of their armed wings to subvert and scuttle the peace efforts. Today in the face of the sad news of the deaths in jerusalem, I'm choosing to believe that these acts of violence are reaching their end.
All my sympathies to those affected by one man's reprehensible decision.
Shawna