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Photos:
Scene. AP. Published by IMEMC News
Victim: Shai Ohayon, 39. Courtesy of family. Published by IMEMC News
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by IMEMC News
AUG 27, 2020

An Israeli man, on Wednesday, was allegedly stabbed by a Palestinian worker in Petah Tikva, central Israel, Haaretz reported.

The victim, Shai Ohayon, 39, a father of four who was unconscious when first responders reached him, was transferred to hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

The suspect, a Palestinian man from the West Bank, who holds a valid Israeli work permit, was chased by witnesses, and then arrested by the Israeli Police, who suspected a political motive for the attack.

The suspect will be interrogated by Israel’s Intelligence Agency, the Shin Bet.

Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu announced to the nation that his government, “will work to demolish the terrorist’s house and carry out the most severe punishment.”

Israeli Y-Net News also called the attack a ‘terror’ attack, although it said that the suspect does not appear to belong to any terror groups.

Magen David Adom teams reported that the victim had multiple stab wounds to his upper body, that the victim was provided with medical treatment and transferred to Rabin Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead.

After a preliminary investigation, Y-net claimed that the suspect stabbed the victim due to his ultra-Orthodox attire.

~ Haaretz, Y-Net
Images: AP, victim photo, courtesy of family
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Palestinian Suspect in Fatal Stabbing Suffered From Depression, Wasn't Politically Active, Brother Says

by Hagar Shezaf and Bar Peleg for Haaretz
Aug 27, 2020

A Palestinian man suspected in fatal stabbing in central Israel on Wednesday has been suffering from depression for four years and has been in treatment, his brother told Haaretz on Thursday, stressing he has never been politically active.

A magistrate's court extended the detention of suspect Khalil Dweikat by five days. Israeli forces have already mapped out the home of Dweikat, 46, a father of six from Rujeib, a village near Nablus, readying it for possible demolition for the crime.

Family members are expected to be questioned as the Shin Bet seeks possible accomplices in the killing of Israeli student and Rabbi Shai Ohayon in Petah Tikva.

Dweikat’s brother, Khaled, told Haaretz that he has been in treatment at a West Bank clinic, adding Khalil had been on medication for his psychological problems, but may have stopped taking them recently.

The suspect is a construction worker who had been previously employed in Nablus. He was issued a work permit last month to do construction work in Israel.

“He has six daughters, the eldest is 20, and they are the most important things in his life,” Dweikat’s brother said. “I once went with him to Jordan and in the middle of the night he woke up crying worried for his daughters. He said he had to know what was happening with them right away.”

“He’s a man who goes to work and comes home and that’s it," the suspect's brother said. "He’s a quiet man and doesn’t even talk about these issues." Asked whether he ever heard him saying "anything extreme" about Israel or Israelis, the brother denied ever hearing him say anything of the sort.

The suspect’s wife is unemployed and his brother said that Khalil also missed work at times when he was depressed. “We were very surprised, as was everyone who knows him. We still don’t believe it,” the suspect’s brother said. “Maybe he acted without knowing what he was doing.”

Khaled said that two of their brothers had brought documentation of their Dweikat's psychological issues to Shin Bet investigators.

Shin Bet agents began questioning Dweikat on Wednesday about his version of events.

Following the attack, the Shin Bet had suspected that Dweikat was psychologically unstable due to his behavior at the scene of the crime. The Shin Bet did not believe he had received an official diagnosis because he had been able to obtain a work permit. The Shin Bet will reexamine Dweikat's psychological status and the possibility that his condition had deteriorated since he had received the work permit.

Ohayon, 39, a father of four, was buried overnight Wednesday in the Segula cemetery after his family agreed to an autopsy. He had studied at a yeshiva in Kfar Sava. He took a bus to the Segula junction and was stabbed after getting off the bus. Dweikat tried to flee the scene, but was stopped by a passerby with a club in his hand. Police later caught him and found a long knife in his possession.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said: ‘We will act to destroy the terrorist’s home and administer the most severe punishment.”

Last week a Palestinian man from Jenin was arrested on suspicion of stabbing an Israeli in Rosh Ha’ayin a few days earlier with supposedly nationalistic motives. The victim was seriously wounded, and after testifying that the assailant had shouted at him in Arabic, the incident is being investigated as a possible terrorist attack. Police initially told the media they were looking into the possibility that the stabbing had been the result of a brawl. The Shin Bet said the suspect had no permit to enter Israel. Three other suspects have been arrested as accomplices.
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Israeli Killed in Suspected Stabbing Attack; Palestinian Suspect Arrested

Suspect, 46-year-old Palestinian from village near Nablus, was transferred by police to Shin Bet for interrogation

by Bar Peleg for Haaretz
8/26/2020

A 39-year-old man was fatally stabbed in central Israel Wednesday by a Palestinian from the West Bank, who was later arrested at the scene by the Israel Police.

The attacker, a 46-year-old from a village near Nablus with a valid Israeli work permit, is being questioned by the Shin Bet. Police said that according to the investigation it is suspected that the attacker had political motives.

After stabbing the 39-year-old victim, Shai Ohayon, as he got off a bus, the suspect fled towards the nearby Segula Junction in Petah Tikva. A passerby saw the attacker leaving the scene, and chased after him. He was later arrested by police, and a long knife was found in his hand.

A first responder who arrived at the scene said that the victim was already unconscious. He was treated in the trauma ward of the nearby Beilinson Hospital, where he later passed away.

Following the incident, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sent his condolences to the victim's family. "On behalf of all Israeli citizens, I send my deepest condolences to the Ohayon family on the murder of the father of the family, Rabbi Shai, in a stabbing attack today in Petah Tikva. My heart aches. My wife Sarah and I are embracing the family, a wife and four children left today without a father. We will work to demolish the terrorist's house and carry out the most severe punishment."

Ohayon was the father of four children, aged four to 13. His father-in-law, Ofer Karaz, said: "When I heard of the attack and the details I straight away thought it was my son-in-law. I tried to call him a few times and my daughter also tried, but the phone was not available. Then a relative called me and told me it was him."

Karaz said that Ohayon taught Torah lessons in Moshav Sha'ar Efraim, where he lived until three years ago. "People loved him very much, they would say that his lessons send chills."

Ohayon's friend, David Yosef, said: "He studied, was ordained a rabbi and also worked and supported his family with dignity. He planned to go to Uman and wait to see if it would be possible to fly. He was righteous, the Holy One took a holy man."