A number of Israeli Jewish settlers were wounded, some of them critically, when an attacker opened fire at their bus in Occupied East Jerusalem, Al Jazeera and other Arabic-speaking media reported.
The Israeli newspaper Haaretz put the number of wounded at 8, claiming that one of the settlers was a pregnant woman.
Though the Israeli occupation army has carried out a mass search operation in Palestinian towns and villages near the area, a 26-year-old East Jerusalem resident turned himself in, six hours after the attack.
The media has named the Palestinian, who holds Israeli citizenship, Amir Sidawi. The latter is not affiliated with any Palestinian group, Haaretz reported, citing Israeli police sources.
Media coverage: "A photo of Palestinan resistance fighter Amir Sidawi, who carried out the shooting operation last night in occupied Jerusalem in which 7 Israeli settlers were wounded, some of them seriously." pic.twitter.com/UWaNMw9TgB
— Quds News Network (@QudsNen) August 14, 2022
Little is known about Sidawi, aside from the fact that his family lives in the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Silwan, one of several Palestinian neighborhoods that have been targeted by Jewish extremists and Israeli police.
Several Palestinian homes in Silwan have been demolished in recent years, rendering many of the town’s residents homeless.
It is unusual that a Palestinian attacker turns himself in to the police as Sidawi has done. A Palestinian analyst told The Palestine Chronicle that he might have done so to prevent more violent Israeli retaliations against Silwan, as is often the case in such situations.
#Jerusalem Collective punishment is a #War_Crime, the Israeli occupation must realize it provokes more occurrences of the undesired behavior.
Arresting family members of Amir sidawi is collective punishment & shall generate more hatred against #apartheid! #endisraelioccupation— Dalal IRIQAT دلال عريقات (@DalalIRIQAT) August 14, 2022
While Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid referred to the attacker as a “despicable terrorist”, various Palestinian groups hailed the attack as legitimate resistance against the Israeli occupation.
Hamas, the socialist Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), and the Islamic Jihad said that the attack was a natural response to the recent assassinations and killings in the West Bank, as well as the recent deadly war on the Gaza Strip, which has killed 49 Palestinians and wounded over 300.
(The Palestine Chronicle)
