American-Israeli victim of Jerusalem bus attack succumbs to his wounds
(JNS.org) An American-Israeli man who was critically wounded in a Jerusalem terrorist attack two weeks ago died Tuesday morning.
Richard Lakin, 76, is the third victim of the attack, in which two Arab terrorists boarded a bus traveling between the capital’s Jewish neighborhood of Armon Hanatziv and neighborhood of Arab Jabel Mukaber, and opened fire on the passengers. Once they were out of ammunition, the terrorists began stabbing passengers.
Haviv Haim, 78, and Alon Govberg, 51, were killed instantly, while Lakin, who sustained a gunshot wound to the head and a stab wound to the chest, was rushed to Hadassah Ein Kerem Hospital in Jerusalem in critical condition. Ten other passengers sustained moderate-to-light injuries in the attack.
Lakin was hospitalized in Hadassah’s Intensive Care Unit and underwent several surgeries in an effort to save his live, but doctors were ultimately unable to stabilize his condition.
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20,000 Israelis sue Facebook over Palestinian incitement
(JNS.org) The Shurat HaDin – Israel Law Center on Tuesday submitted a lawsuit against Facebook in a New York court on behalf of 20,000 Israelis, with the plaintiffs claiming that the social media platform is facilitating incitement against Israelis.
At the onset of the current wave of Palestinian terror, Shurat HaDin, which works to fight terrorism on the legal front, began a petition to recruit thousands of Israelis under the title “Suing Facebook — Disconnecting Terror.”
The organization is asking the New York court to issue an injunction against Facebook to remove the inciting pages, monitor the methods of incitement and block them, and hold Facebook responsible for allowing terrorists on its network.
As one example of incitement, Shurat HaDin cited the case of 19-year-old terrorist Muhannad Halabi, who wrote on his Facebook page, “I want to become a martyr,” prior to carrying out a stabbing attack the following day. Halabi stabbed Aharon Bennett and Rabbi Nehemia Lavi to death.
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Sean Penn to visit Israel for conference on Haiti as guest of IsraAID
(JNS.org) Hollywood actor Sean Penn, 55, will visit Israel in November as a guest of the Israeli humanitarian organization the Israel Forum for International Humanitarian Aid (IsraAID) to participate in a conference on rebuilding Haiti after the 2010 earthquake that occurred in the island nation.
Penn has visited and volunteered in Haiti along with Israeli volunteers several times. In one visit, he met with former Israeli president Shimon Peres, according to Yedioth Ahronoth.
“I think that the power that the U.S. gave to Israel has made it a powerful country and has thus pushed peace further away,” Penn, whose later father was Jewish, has previously told Israeli media.
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Israel developing emergency mobile app to fight terror, Netanyahu says
(JNS.org) Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee on Monday that the government is developing an emergency smartphone application that would allow anyone to notify security forces immediately in the event of a terror attack.
“We will develop an application for all citizens, for free of course. Anyone who has a mobile phone—which is everyone —will be able to press a button that will immediately send a trace of his location to security forces. This will allow the forces to intervene quickly in Jerusalem and all Israeli cities,” Netanyahu said, as translated from the Ma’ariv newspaper.
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PM reportedly considers revoking residency for eastern Jerusalem Arabs
(JNS.org) Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is reportedly considering revoking the residency status of Arabs living in eastern Jerusalem amid the current spate of Palestinian terror attacks against Jews.
According to Israel’s Channel 2, Netanyahu raised the issue during a meeting of his security cabinet two weeks ago.
“We need to examine the possibility of canceling their residency. There needs to be a discussion about it,” Netanyahu reportedly said.
A number of terror attacks over the last several weeks have been carried out by Arab residents of eastern Jerusalem. In a bid to halt the attacks, temporary barriers were erected and checkpoints were set up in some Arab neighborhoods. But after facing a backlash from some Jewish lawmakers who were upset that the measures were dividing the capital, Netanyahu ordered a halt to the barriers.
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Jewish humanitarian group JDC responds to South Asia earthquake
(JNS.org) The American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee (JDC) on Monday responded swiftly to the latest earthquake to strike South Asia.
JDC said it has disbursed emergency grants two partners, the All India Disaster Mitigation Institute and the International Blue Crescent, who will provide medical and emergency aid in India, Afghanistan, and Pakistan. Additionally, experts from the JDC’s Disaster Relief and India teams are consulting with groups on the ground to assess the damage and humanitarian needs of survivors.
“As we anxiously await details on the tragic loss of life and extent of the damage in South Asia, we are drawing on our vast experience, network of partners, and standing presence in the region to deploy a speedy Jewish response that ensures relief to survivors at their time of need,” said Alan H. Gill, JDC’s CEO.
A powerful 7.5-magnitude earthquake struck Afghanistan on Monday afternoon, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. The earthquake’s epicenter was located about 28 miles southwest of the village of Jarm, which is near the Afghanistan-Pakistan border. The tremors were felt as far away as Islamabad and New Delhi. According to early reports from the region, at least 180 people died.
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