The Jewish world is buzzing with questions about the motivation of an Arab woman who was the driver in a ‘hit-and-run’ that injured a Jewish woman and her small children Monday night in the mixed Jewish and Arab city of Ramle.
The Jewish woman, had stopped at a pedestrian crossing at around midnight with her three children, ages 6, 5 and 4 months old, while walking home.
The story being flashed around Israel on WhatsApp, Tuesday and even reaching to the U.S. is that the female Arab driver, who arrived at the crossing, had gestured for the little family to cross the street and trustingly, the woman began to cross. But as she and her children reached the middle of the road, the Arab driver accelerated her vehicle and ran the family over, injuring all four.
Police reportedly were searching for the driver and her vehicle. But on Tuesday afternoon, Israel Police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld informed JewishPress.com in an SMS exchange that police have classified the incident as a “regular road accident.”
When asked whether the perpetrator had been arrested, Rosenfeld did not reply — leaving open the question as to whether, in fact, an investigation into the incident has even really been launched.
On September 23, 2011, Kiryat Arba resident Asher Palmer was driving on Highway 60 with his infant son Yonatan when he was attacked by two Arab road terrorists. The rocks that were hurled at his vehicle caused him to lose control of the car, which then overturned and crashed. Both Palmer and his baby boy died in what police immediately classified the incident as nothing more than a motor vehicle accident. Neighbors and first responders to the scene knew better, however, and persisted in pressuring police and other government officials into pursuing a more active probe.
Subsequent investigation with strong ongoing pressure from activists revealed the true evidence, including the actual rock that had smashed the windshield and landed in the car. Eventually intelligence ferreted out the perpetrators, who ultimately confessed to the crime — with pride — in an Israeli courtroom.
Israel is now into its third intifada. Quite a number of Palestinian Authority Arabs — and some who are citizens of Israel, even — are doing their best to support Hamas in its efforts to annihilate Israel and its Jewish residents.
The circumstances surrounding the incident in Ramle are still not clear — but it is patently obvious that given the current situation, an investigation is warranted. The question is, are police just too overwhelmed, politically and in terms of human resources, to be able to carry that out?