An Israeli security guard died after sustaining critical wounds Saturday afternoon in a terrorist attack in Tel Aviv.
הירי במחבל שביצע את פיגוע הירי בתל אביב pic.twitter.com/XYmBH75UYs
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“The Ichilov Tel Aviv Medical Center announces with great sadness the death of Chen Amir, a Tel Aviv-Yafo municipal security officer. Chen, 42 years old, was married to Vered and was the father of three daughters. He was killed while preventing a major terrorist attack with his body. He saved many lives with his death,” the hospital said in a statement.
“His family has generously agreed to donate his organs to save lives.
“The hospital shares in the family’s grief. May his memory be a blessing.”
Police Commissioner Kobi Shabtai told reporters that Amir and his partner noticed the terrorist acting suspiciously at the corner of Montefiore and Nahalat Binyamin streets – a busy thoroughfare packed with restaurants, cafes, and bars.
As the two officers approached the suspect – who ignored their calls – he pulled out a pistol and opened fire at the pair, hitting Amir.
הירי במחבל שביצע את פיגוע הירי בתל אביב pic.twitter.com/XYmBH75UYs
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“A 40-year-old man was lying unconscious, with no pulse and no breathing, and had sustained penetrating injuries to his body,” Magen David Adom medics Shai Bachar and Shimon Pinchas said in a statement. “We immediately initiated CPR and transported him to the hospital in an MDA mobile intensive care unit.”
פיגוע בנחלת בנימין, תל אביב. שלושה פצועים, בהם אחד במצב קשה מאד , המחבל ימ”ש חוסל pic.twitter.com/75JoW9W48w
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The terrorist, a resident of Jenin, was shot at the scene by Amir’s partner. Although the attacker also received medical treatment at the scene from MDA medics, he subsequently died of his wounds.
The Shin Bet has identified the terrorist as 22-year-old Kamal Abu Bakr, an illegal resident in the Lower Galilee town of Rumana. Abu Bakr lived in the terrorist hotbed of Jenin for the past two years and was a member of the so-called “Jenin Brigades”, a military wing of the Iranian-linked Palestinian Islamic Jihad terrorist organization.
Abu Bakr was wanted for the past six months, according to the Shin Bet.
Shabtai told reporters the terrorist left a note declaring his intent to become a “martyr”. The police commissioner praised the quick action of the security guards, noting that their swift actions had prevented wider casualties.
“There is no doubt that your quick and professional action saved lives,” he said. “Just a few meters away we can see coffee shops and people, understanding the magnitude of the disaster averted. This is thanks to your vigilance and determination to make an impact.”
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also praised the officers in a statement issued shortly after the attack.
“I commend the members of the urban security patrol of the Tel Aviv municipality for their vigilance and striving for contact, which thus thwarted a much more serious attack,” the prime minister said. “Our security forces will settle accounts with all those who seek our lives.”
