Palestinian killer’s home demolished by Israel

Relative of Abdel Rahman al-Shaludi holds his portrait amid rubble of the family home. Picture: Getty

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Israeli forces have demolished the East Jerusalem home of a Palestinian who carried out a deadly attack, just hours after prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu promised strict measures to deal with a rise in violence in the area.

The demolition in the Silwan area targeted the home of Abdel Rahman al-Shaludi, who killed two people last month when he drove his car into a crowd on a light rail platform in Jerusalem. He was then shot dead by police.

In recent weeks, a total of 11 people have died at the hands of Palestinian attackers – most in Jerusalem, but also in Tel Aviv and the West Bank.

The victims include four Jewish worshippers and an Israeli policeman who were killed when two Palestinian cousins, wielding meat cleavers and a handgun, attacked a synagogue on Tuesday in the West Jerusalem neighbourhood of Har Nof.

The two assailants were shot dead by police afterwards.

The attack was the deadliest in Jerusalem since 2008 and sharply escalated already high tensions after weeks of religious violence.

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Mr Netanyahu said he had ordered security forces to hit back hard at Palestinians involved in violence against Israelis.

Sitting in the rubble of the family home after its demolition, the grandmother of Rahman al-Shaludi said she was proud of his actions. “No-one should feel sorry for us, for our demolished home,” she said.

Al-Shaludi’s attack killed a three-month-old baby girl and a woman of 22 as he rammed his car into the train stop.

Punitive demolition was once frequently used by Israeli security forces before defence chiefs suspended it in 2005 saying it was not an effective deterrent.

Since then it has been used three times in East Jerusalem in 2009 and three times over last summer in response to the murders of an Israeli policeman and three Israeli teenagers.

Meanwhile, worshippers returned to the scene of the most recent attack, the Kehilat Bnai Torah synagogue. One of them, Gavriel Cohen, said the attack showed “that our future in this world is dependent on God”.

All four people killed in the attack had come to Israel from English-speaking countries – three from the US, and one from the UK.

Much of the recent violence stems from tension over a contested hilltop compound in Jerusalem’s Old City.

The sacred site, known to Jews as Temple Mount and to Muslims as Noble Sanctuary, has seen increased Israeli visits recently, which many Palestinians see as provocation.

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