Finally, the ambulance slowly leaves, with the police truck right behind it. The road is rocky and uneven. They will have to be careful on the road. The drivers and their partners are armed, however, and well equipped to deal with any challenges they may meet on the way.
The five tourists are now out of danger. Not so, the police and soldiers who still must protect others as they did these young men.
As serious an issue – perhaps more serious, even – is the question of who will protect Faiz Abu Hamadya? This is a man who may now potentially have traded his own life for those of five Jews he never met and probably never will.
How will Israel protect him? We owe him a debt. He is a Righteous Gentile Among the Nations, living in our midst, today.
Another issue is the problem with apprising tourists who arrive in this country about the dangers of using GPS systems – any GPS system – in Judea, Samaria and areas of Jerusalem that were occupied by Jordan prior to 1967.
It is a known fact – and has been repeatedly publicized here in Israel – that one should never use WAZE, for instance, to navigate anywhere in Judea and Samaria due to boundary line confusion. Obviously the auto rental company forgot to warn these tourists when they took the car, with disastrous results.
Most rental companies forbid customers from driving their cars over the 1949 Armistice Line, but that is silly and not a solution. At this point, such an edict is tantamount to cutting off access to more than half of Jerusalem to your client.
It is better to simply offer accurate maps, better directions and clarity in recommendations – ie: “Do not use GPS anywhere in JUDEA, SAMARIA AND JERUSALEM, and Pay attention to the RED signs that say ‘This is the Palestinian Authority area and Israelis cannot enter here.’ and therefore do not drive there.”