US Ambassador Friedman criticizes Palestinian silence after terror attacks

"Such brutality and no condemnation from the PA! I pray for the families and the wounded – so much sadness,” US Ambassador to Israel David Friedman tweeted.

By HERB KEINON
Updated: MARCH 19, 2018 16:21
US Ambassador David Friedman at the knesset (photo credit: MATTY STERN, US EMBASSY TEL AVIV)
US Ambassador David Friedman at the knesset
(photo credit: MATTY STERN, US EMBASSY TEL AVIV)
US Ambassador to Israel David Friedman knocked the Palestinian Authority’s silence in the wake of the two recent terrorist attacks, in a tweet he posted on Monday that continued his practice of sharply criticizing the Palestinian leadership after each attack.
Father of Jerusalem Stabbing Victim Says Kadish for Son, March 19, 2018 (Tovah Lazaroff/Israel Police)
“Tragedy in Israel. 2 young soldiers, Netanel Kahalani and Ziv Daos, murdered in the North, and father of 4, Adiel Kolman, murdered in Jerusalem, by Palestinian terrorists. Such brutality and no condemnation from the PA! I pray for the families and the wounded – so much sadness,” Friedman tweeted.

In early February, Friedman responded with a similar tweet to the terrorist attack in Ariel in which Rabbi Itamar Ben-Gal from Har Bracha was killed: “20 years ago I gave an ambulance to Har Bracha hoping it would be used to deliver healthy babies. Instead, a man from Har Bracha was just murdered by a terrorist, leaving behind a wife and four children. Palestinian “leaders” have praised the killer. Praying for the Ben-Gal family.”
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas’s spokesman Nabil Abu Rudeineh said in response to that tweet, “The statements by the US ambassador lead us to wonder about the ambassador’s relationship with the occupation: Does he represent the US or Israel?”
“The ambassador’s advice and consultations, which are not aimed at achieving a just peace based on international legality, have led to this crisis in US–Palestinian relations,” Rudeineh charged.
And in January, after the murder of Rabbi Raziel Shevach near Gilad Farm, Friedman tweeted: “An Israeli father of six was killed last night in cold blood by Palestinian terrorists. Hamas praises the killers and PA laws will provide them financial rewards. Look no further as to why there is no peace. Praying for the bereaved Shevach family.”

That tweet elicited this response from the PA: “The American ambassador in Tel Aviv is known for his predetermined positions, which reflect a total bias in favor of the occupation and settlement.”

Senior PA officials in Ramallah did not publicly comment on Friday’s deadly car-ramming. Nonetheless, PA security forces have been reported as having taking action against Palestinians who were planning attacks against Israelis, in an effort to stop them.
A Palestinian Authority security official told The Jerusalem Post in January that the PA security forces “are constantly trying to prevent attacks” against Israelis.
Adam Rasgon contributed to this report.