US, UN, UAE, others, denounce ‘heinous’ Palestinian terrorism in Jerusalem

“To attack worshippers at a synagogue on Holocaust Memorial Day, and during Shabbat, is horrific. We stand with our Israeli friends.”

By World Israel News Staff

President Joe Biden called Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to express “his shock and condolences” over two separate terrorist attacks that took place in Jerusalem, the Israeli leader said on Saturday night.

Netanyahu told the security cabinet in an emergency meeting that he had thanked Biden, who had condemned “this terrible act of murder.”

“I also thank many other leaders, including from Arab countries, for standing by Israel at this time. We all pray for the recovery of those injured in the two attacks,” he said.

Meanwhile, Vice President Kamala Harris called President Isaac Herzog at the end of Shabbat, condemning the attacks and expressing condolences on behalf of the American people.

In the first attack, a Palestinian terrorist killed seven people, including children, as they were leaving Shabbat prayers at a synagogue in the Jerusalem neighborhood of Neve Yaakov.

The second attack occurred the morning after, when a 13-year-old terrorist opened fire on a father and son, severely injuring them.

Herzog also received calls from German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, French President Emanuel Macron, and U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres, who expressed their condolences to the families of the victims and to the people of Israel.

Herzog told Harris that he was looking forward to Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s visit this coming week. A State Department spokesperson said earlier that the attack would not impact his upcoming visit.

U.S. Ambassador to Israel Tom Nides condemned Friday night’s shooting attack, expressing shock and disgust at the “horrific act of violence” and noting that the attack took place on International Holocaust Remembrance Day.

UK Foreign Secretary James Cleverly said: “To attack worshippers at a synagogue on Holocaust Memorial Day, and during Shabbat, is horrific. We stand with our Israeli friends.”

The UAE denounced the “criminal” attack on Friday and offered its “sincere condolences to the Israeli government and its people and its sympathy to the families of the victims while wishing a speedy recovery to all of the injured.”

Turkey’s foreign ministry condemned the attack and expressed concern that it would lead to a new “spiral of violence.”

“We strongly condemn the terror attack at a synagogue in Jerusalem where many people lost their lives. We offer our condolences to the families of the victims, the Israeli government and people. We wish a speedy recovery to the injured,” Turkey said.

Japan, Poland, Germany, Italy, Sweden, Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, North Macedonia, Slovenia, and the Czech Republic also condemned the attack.

Earlier, Herzog released a statement calling both attacks “heartbreaking.”

“My heart breaks at news of the horrific terror attacks over Shabbat in Jerusalem. We have lost seven innocent civilians in a murderous terror attack, who had only just welcomed Shabbat into their homes and communities. May their memories be a blessing,” said Herzog.

“This morning in synagogue, as the cantor recited the ‘El Malei Rachamim’ prayer for the souls of the victims of the attack, there was not a single dry eye among the worshippers, including me. We were all moved together.

“These awful terror attacks remind us again of a simple and painful truth: whatever disagreements we may have between us, against our enemies, who want to harm us and rise up to kill us, we must maintain our unity,” added the Israeli president.