Four dead in bulldozer rampage in Jerusalem (3rd Roundup)

Middle East News

By Shabtai Gold, Ofira Koopmans and Jeff Abramowitz Jul 2, 2008, 15:33 GMT

Jerusalem - A Palestinian bulldozer driver went on a rampage along one of West Jerusalem's main traffic thoroughfares Wednesday, leaving a trail of destruction as he killed at least three people and injured 40, before being shot dead. The scene in Jaffa Road, Jerusalem as fire and police officers survey the wreckage of private vehicles after a bulldozer went on the rampage along the main traffic thoroughfare early 2nd July 2008 crushing at least three cars and overturning two buses. The driver of the bulldozer, described as a militant Arab, was shot dead by police. EPA/HO

The scene in Jaffa Road, Jerusalem as fire and police officers survey the wreckage of private vehicles after a bulldozer went on the rampage along the main traffic thoroughfare early 2nd July 2008 crushing at least three cars and overturning two buses. The driver of the bulldozer, described as a militant Arab, was shot dead by police. EPA/HOWitnesses and police said the driver had left a nearby construction site, then drove against traffic onto Jerusalem's central Yaffa street, where he began ploughing into and smashing his mechanical shovel into passing vehicles. He hit about eight cars, a cab and two buses, completely crushing at least two of the private vehicles and flipping one of the busses onto its side. The second bus managed to swerve out of the bulldozer's path, escaping with only minor damage. A policeman and then an armed security guard jumped onto the heavy-duty Caterpillar and struggled with the driver, but they initially failed to overpower him and tear his hands from the steering wheel. An off-duty soldier who was passing also scrambled onto the cab and as the driver began shouting 'Allah U'Akbar ' (God is great), fired three shots at his head, bringing the rampage to a halt. By that time, however, the bulldozer had already worked through more than 500 metres of the central Jerusalem street. One witness said he saw a woman trapped in her vehicle with no chance of escaping as the driver repeatedly rammed the shovel into her windshield. By the time the witness had managed to reach her car she was gasping her last breaths. An infant, who had been in the baby seat in the back of the car, was pulled unscathed from the vehicle by passers-by. The other two fatalities were another woman and a man. Some 35 passengers had been on the Number 13 city bus which was overturned. The bus driver and several of his passengers were among the injured. The bus, lying on its side, was completely smashed on the inside, with personal belongings, including groceries, newspapers and a stroller, lying scattered around, a Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa reporter at the scene said. Eli Mizrahi, the policeman who jumped on the bulldozer, told reporters the driver was 'in a frenzy,' barrelling down the road, his hands tight on the steering wheel. Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's Spokesman called the attack 'an act of senseless, murderous violence.' A shadowy group calling itself the Imad Mughniyah Brigades of Free Galilee claimed responsibility in phonecalls to local Palestinian news agencies. The same group, however, has made several false claims of responsibility in the past. Mughniyah, a senior leader of Lebanon's Hezbollah, was assassinated in Damascus in February, and the radical Shiite movement had blamed Israel and vowed revenge. Police described the perpetrator as a 'lone' attacker, who had been working on a housing construction site around the corner of the incident. He had a criminal record and was married with children. A large Israeli police force later entered Sur Baher, an East Jerusalem neighbourhood on the city's southern outskirts, and began searching the house of a 30-year-old Palestinian, Hussam Dwayat, identified as the perpetrator, local residents told dpa. The last Palestinian attack in Jerusalem took place on March 6, when, ending four years of calm in the city, another East Jerusalem resident burst into a religious school or yeshiva in West Jerusalem, opened fire and killed eight students, By a strange coincidence, the soldier who killed the perpetrator of Wednesday's attack is the brother-in-law of the army officer who shot dead the militant who opened fire at the yeshiva. Jerusalem had in the earlier years of the current Palestinian Intifada uprising against Israel been the site of numerous suicide bombings and shooting sprees. But the Intifada had during the last few years lost its intensity, especially as regards attacks from the West Bank, where the Ramallah- based administration of moderate Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has also over the past months revived peace negotiations with Israel. The uprising has instead continued mainly in the form of near- daily rocket and mortar attacks from the Gaza Strip, where a shaky truce took hold only two weeks ago. Israel has credited its controversial security barrier as the main cause for the reduction in attacks launched from the West Bank. But Wednesday's attack and the yeshiva shooting in March, both committed by Palestinians from East Jerusalem, have sparked concern of a new trend. The barrier snakes around East Jerusalem and cuts it off from the rest of the West Bank, because building the wall on the border between the eastern and western sections would have meant a de-facto division of the city. As a result, Israel has no control over the entry of East Jerusalem residents into the Jewish, eastern section of the city. Some Israeli lawmakers have demanded the government strip East Jerusalem residents who carry out attacks off their Israeli citizenship and their social security benefits. Israeli Trade and Industry Minister Eli Yishai, of the ultra- Orthodox Shas party, also demanded that if it became clear Wednesday's attacker had Israeli citizenship, Israel should change the law to enable it to demolish his family's East Jerusalem home.

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PorkyJul 2nd, 2008 - 16:43:03

There is only one religion that can produce enough hatred towards non believers that it's devotees feel justified in killing as many non-believers as possible and that is the non-religion of Islam.

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Bull DozerJul 2nd, 2008 - 16:53:24

Where is the 'bulldozer'? I only see a front-end loader.

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tonny from belgiumJul 2nd, 2008 - 17:46:00

Nothing to do with rligious intolerance of course .Sad how some posters don't know the first thing about the cirrent situation in Jeruzalem .Fact is Jeruzalem was arab,it was invaded by Israel and colonized by jewish colonists ,kicking out the original arab population ,on religious grounds .So where is the religious intolerance ?Of course it resides with the jewish colonists ,nowhere else .Sad that some posters are so utterly ignorant of simple facts .More and more it seems anything is allowed whn it concernes arabs .Now that is what I call racism .Cynicaly arabs have now replaced jews as target of racists .Better learn your history lessons and recent history .

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Margaret from CanadaJul 2nd, 2008 - 18:31:08

To Tonny: There are only 14,000,000 Jews in the world and over 150,000,000 Arabs backed by 1.2 Billion Muslims who are opposed to Israels existence. Both of these groups see the middle east as a homeland but for some reason Arabs will not tolerate Jews owing a country of their own on a few square miles. Did you know that Jordan and Lebanon have slaughtered thousands of Palestinians? That Egypt threatens to torture (and in fact does torture) Palestinians who try to get in their country? Why did the UN have to ask other arab countries to help feed Palestinians instead of leaving it up to the West? Why do you think this is? You might look up a few facts yourself.

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SP4:OK, a towelhead f--brain went postal ...and...Jul 2nd, 2008 - 19:41:18

...about 45,000(?) people are going to die inthe (formerly Belgian) congo this month....? Where's the f--king pictures on that???? Can't get a single photo op on that, can you???? No, THAT would take a real reporter...

I've been picking away at Ronald Reagan's diary for about 6 months. I'll bet he spent, conservatively, a word I like, about 20% of his goddamn time dealing with the arabs and Israel.....you know, that's just a little too much for my liking. The worst part, if you pick up todays paper, the names are different but it's all yhe same f--king groups in the news...after 20 f--king years....

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SP4: oh yeah, and Tonny...Jul 2nd, 2008 - 19:44:25

..I guess we could just shave their heads, tatto their arms and put them in gas chambers, but Americans are just too picky....

Why, exactly do you think Jews wanted their own nation so bad?

Follow up on that Tonny and get back to us. Further study might include 'Auswitz'...

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get a brain tonnyJul 2nd, 2008 - 22:55:06

'tonny from belgium

Nothing to do with rligious intolerance of course '

You are the perfect example of a european idiot.

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hurrJul 2nd, 2008 - 23:08:57

to 'get a brain tonny'

not that big as you are.

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spfoolJul 3rd, 2008 - 19:58:21

Nuke'm, nuke'm, nuke'm! I am so Rapture ready! Armageddon is almost here, so now we have to work the hardest to bring it on! My God told me that I have a ticket to heaven after I am born again, while almost everyone else on earth dies in an inferno, so of course I believe it!

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God talks to Schizophrenics only, like Bush and..Jul 3rd, 2008 - 20:51:58

Psycho paths, liars, hypocrites claim that God talks to them. There is nothing new. The euroamerican white beasts claim that He talks to them!!

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Four dead in bulldozer rampage in Jerusalem (3rd Roundup)

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