14-Apr-17: The urge to stab erupts again: In Jerusalem, a young woman is knifed on a tram

Paramedics at the scene [Image Source]

As busy, bustling and full of life as Israel's capital is today during the Passover festival, there is a serious incident to report.

The deep strategic reserves of explosive hatred, in evidence for generations in the form of Arab-on-Israeli terror, erupted again a short time ago, Friday a little after noon, in Jerusalem.

A young woman is reported (at about 1:40 pm Friday) to be in critical condition after becoming the latest victim of a stabbing attack, this time while on board the Jerusalem Light Rail. As we write this, the latest report says first-responder medics from the Magen David Adom ambulance service gave her emergency treatment at the scene of the attack. She was then rushed to Jerusalem’s Hadassah Mount Scopus hospital unconscious and in critical condition with multiple stab wounds to the upper body. Times of Israel is estimating she is in her mid-twenties.

There are additional victims. A pregnant woman suffered an injury to the stomach when the tram came to a sudden halt as a consequence of the terror attack. A man said to be in his 50s suffered an injured leg in trying to run from the scene. Both were brought to Shaarei Zedek Medical Center hospital for emergency treatment.

The scene of the stabbing is close to Zahal Square where Jerusalem's principal thoroughfare comes as close as it ever does to the Old City Walls and nearby Jaffa Gate. Damscus Gate of the Old City, a favored locale for Arab violence, is a couple of hundred meters further along the tram tracks. Officers of the Border Guard police sealed Damascus Gate as they often do when terrorist activity takes place in its vicinity.

At this stage, we have no information about the attacker other than he is reported to be alive and well.

UPDATE 1:55 pm: A Hebrew social media report quotes a senior police source saying the attacker is a male in his fifties, thought to be suffering from mental problems (vague and unspecified at this stage). Times of Israel reports that the victim is British, and the attacker is an East Jerusalem resident - probably meaning a Palestinian Arab.

UPDATE 2:15 pm Friday: Ynet says the stabbing victim, a young British woman of 22, a student, has died of her wounds. What a terrible tragedy.

UPDATE 2:40 pm Friday: The stabber is named by Ynet: Jamil Tamimi, 57, from the Jerusalem Arab neighborhood of Ras al-Amud. That name Tamimi has strong resonances for us. The Arab Ma'an News Agency says he "has a prior criminal police record for domestic violence".