Abu Hamid’s home had already been demolished by Israel but was rebuilt with “support from the public and the Palestinian Authority,” according to PA news outlet WAFA.
By World Israel News Staff
The Israeli military has again demolished the home, in the Amari refugee camp located in Ramallah, of the family of the terrorist who killed Staff Sgt. Ronen Lubarsky in 2018, according to the IDF.
The operation took place overnight, said the military statement which was posted on Twitter together with a brief video clip showing the troops in action and machinery used to demolish the home.
“During the operation to demolish the residence, dozens of Palestinians instigated a number of riots,” said the IDF. “The rioters hurled rocks and firebombs at the troops, who responded with riot dispersal means. No IDF injuries were reported,” the statement continued.
“In addition, during the operation, the troops apprehended a number of Hamas operatives and transferred them to security forces for further questioning,” according to the Israeli military.
In May 2018, an Israeli military operation in the refugee camp was carried out by the elite IDF Duvdevan Unit, which was sent there to arrest suspected terrorists. Rioting broke out during the operation and heavy objects were thrown at the IDF soldiers.
During the skirmish, Islam Yousef Abu Hamid dropped a heavy marble object on Lubarsky’s head. The soldier was immediately rushed to Jerusalem’s Hadassah Ein Kerem hospital, where he succumbed to his wounds two days later.
Abu Hamid’s home had already been demolished by Israel in December 2018, but was rebuilt with “support from the public and the Palestinian Authority,” according to PA news outlet WAFA.
The Palestinian Authority (PA) “is busy rebuilding the homes of murderers of Israelis. This gesture of appreciation for terrorists who have murdered has been authorized from the top of the PA – by both PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas and [then-]Prime Minister Rami Hamdallah,” wrote Palestinian Media Watch, an Israeli watchdog, in January.
“The IDF will continue monitoring demolished terrorists’ homes and will operate to thwart terror activities in Judea and Samaria in order to preserve security in the area,” said the army in its Thursday statement.
Israel carries out the practice of demolishing the homes of the families of terrorists as a deterrent measure, using the logic that terror is encouraged by an Islamic ideology which espouses that killing Jews is rewarded with paradise so that terrorists don’t care about their own lives.
But knowing that their family’s home might be destroyed could make would-be killers think twice, those in favor of the policy argue.