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Border Police officer seriously injured in car ramming attack

The 22-year-old Palestinian driver was neutralized at the scene and arrested.

By Batya Jerenberg, World Israel News

A Border Police officer was seriously injured in a car ramming attack in Qalandiya near Jerusalem soon after midnight Wednesday during a police operation.

The security forces were in the Palestinian village evacuating illegal buildings when a car speeded towards them and hit the officer. His colleagues immediately shot at the vehicle, causing the driver lose control and hit a wall as he fled, forcing him to stop. The 22-year-old Palestinian, a resident of Qalqilya, who was not hit by the shots, was then arrested and transferred to the Shin Bet for questioning.

The injured officer never lost consciousness. He was quickly treated at the scene by several Magen David Adom (MDA) personnel and then brought to Shaare Zedek Hospital in Jerusalem for further care.

“We saw a young man about 20 years old lying on the road; his friends had already bandaged him,” said two of the paramedics, Yafit Ben Shimshon and Aviel Dayan. “He was fully conscious and suffered injuries to the head and abdomen. We provided him with prompt medical treatment in the field and evacuated him quickly to the hospital in moderate and stable condition.”

Police commanders praised the troops for their quick actions.

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Deputy Commander of the Border Guard, Brig. Gen. Yitzhak Brik told the soldiers, “You acted as you are expected. As soon as you recognized that it was a ramming attack, you responded in a professional, determined manner, while striving for contact, which ultimately led to the vehicle being stopped and the terrorist being apprehended.”

The commander of the Jerusalem District, Superintendent Doron Turgeman, said, “This attack is another reminder of the threats that exist in every operational activity and in every area in which we operate. The key is to neutralize any threat immediately and prevent harm to human life,” which the men did by reacting so well.

“We have to continue acting with determination in the face of every attempt to hurt our forces or the lives of Israeli citizens,” he added.

Turgeman and Brik later visited the injured officer in the hospital, along with the Border Police commander in the Jerusalem region, Yuval Shlomo. A hospital spokesman said Thursday morning that the officer’s condition was still serious, but stable.