State indicts Modi’in hammer attacker who 'wanted to be a martyr'

According to the indictment, suspect carried out attack because of what he viewed as the worsening situation of Palestinians in the West Bank and his desire to be a martyr.

By YONAH JEREMY BOB
Updated: DECEMBER 25, 2015 03:09
Palestinian laborers work at a construction site in a settlement near Jerusalem (photo credit: REUTERS)
Palestinian laborers work at a construction site in a settlement near Jerusalem
(photo credit: REUTERS)
The Central District Attorney’s Office on Thursday filed an indictment with the Lod District Court against Ismail Musa Muhammad Alhadidi for attempted murder when he used a hammer to attack two workers at construction sites in Modi’in’s Tziporim neighborhood.
Alhadidi’s alleged attack was the first terror attack in Modi’in since the current wave of violence started in the early fall.
The indictment described Alhadidi’s attack as follows.
Alhadidi, 39, of Beit Sira – west of Ramallah and near Modi’in – and who had been working in construction in Modi’in, started to think about perpetrating a terror attack against Jews at the beginning of December because of what he viewed as the worsening situation of Palestinians in the West Bank and his desire to be a martyr.
On December 12, Alhadidi finally decided he would act on his thoughts and try to kill Jews and he went into action on December 15.
On that day, his manager at the Modi’in construction site approached him to discuss the progress of his work.
When the conversation was over, the manager turned around to leave and Alhadidi struck him in the back with a hammer.
The manager started to try to run away, but Alhadidi caught up to him, grabbed on to him and struck him again with the hammer, knocking him to the ground.
Alhadidi struck the manager on his head while he was lying on the ground.
Other workers who noticed what was happening, came to the scene and tried to separate Alhadidi from the manager, succeeding in disarming the attacker.
However, Alhadidi managed to flee to an adjacent construction site, grabbed an iron slab and started looking for another Jew to attack. At this point, Alhadidi entered the construction site office where an engineer who served as a manager at the second site was sitting.
Mistakenly thinking that this man was also a Jew, Alhadidi struck the man in the head with the iron slab. While he was getting ready to hit the man again, another worker stepped in to stop him and threw Alhadidi against the wall.
After a struggle between the worker and Alhadidi, the worker successfully disarmed him and restrained him until the police arrived to make the arrest.
The victims were transported to Sheba Medical Center, Tel Hashomer, for treatment; one in the neurological ward, the other in the trauma unit. Dr. Yehoram Klein, head of the trauma unit at Sheba, told Ynet that the victim who was seriously wounded had responded to treatment and his condition was upgraded to moderate.
The state prosecution requested that Alhadidi be kept in police custody until the end of the trial against him.
On Wednesday, security forces, acting with instruction from the political echelons and in cooperation with the Civil Administration, planned to demolish Alhadidi’s home.
Since the wave of terrorism hit the capital in early October – largely fueled by Palestinian incitement – the government has expedited demolition orders against terrorists responsible for Israeli murders.
Jerusalem Post Staff contributed to this report.