Palestinian indicted for May 30 Tel Aviv screwdriver stabbing of soldier

According to the indictment, the 18-year-old from the West Bank illegally entered Israel and carried out the attack with the intent to kill an Israel soldier in order to be recognized as a "martyr."

By JPOST.COM STAFF, YONAH JEREMY BOB
Updated: JUNE 15, 2016 00:53
MDA responds to terror stabbing (photo credit: COURTESY MDA)
MDA responds to terror stabbing
(photo credit: COURTESY MDA)
An 18-year-old Palestinian man was indicted on Tuesday in the Tel Aviv District Court for attempted murder after he allegedly stabbed and wounded an IDF soldier with a screwdriver on May 30 in Tel Aviv.
According to the indictment filed by the Tel Aviv District Attorney’s Office, Omar Jandav from the West Bank town of Salfit (near Ramallah), illegally entered Israel on May 19 and later carried out the attack with the intent to kill an Israel soldier in order to be recognized as a shaheed – Arabic for martyr.
Jandav had been illegally residing in Israeli territory while working at a construction site in the Tel Aviv suburb of Givatayim for around 10 days leading up to the stabbing, noted the indictment.
According to the indictment, Jandav decided to attack an IDF soldier after finishing work at the construction site on May 30, and informed his friends of his intentions.
Afterward, Jandav took a 19-centimeter-long (7.5-inch) screwdriver from the construction site and set out to Tel Aviv’s busy Yigal Alon thoroughfare, searching for a target.
Once Jandav came upon a solider, he began to follow him and eventually took out the screwdriver and stabbed the soldier in the back and the head before he fell to the ground.
The indictment added that at one point during the attack the IDF soldier managed to stand up and the assailant attempted to stab him while shouting in Arabic “Allahu Akbar.” At that point, the soldier was able to push the attacker away, and Jandav fled the scene.
Several civilians trailed Jandav as he tried to escape into a nearby apartment complex.
He remained in a standoff, keeping them at bay with the screwdriver, but unable to escape, until the police arrived and he surrendered.
The prosecution requested that Jandav remain in police custody until the end of the trial against him.