Three family members who were slaughtered by 19-year-old Omar al-Abed Friday night at their home in the Jewish community of Halamish (Neve Tsuf) were named Saturday night by authorities.
The grandfather killed in the attack was 70-year-old Yosef Solomon; also murdered were two of his children, 46-year-old Chaya, and his son, 36-year-old Elad, a father of five. Yosef’s wife Tovah was badly injured but survived the attack and remains hospitalized in grave condition at Shaare Zedek Medical Center in Jerusalem.
The terrorist, a resident of the nearby Palestinian Authority village of Khobar, broke into their home as they were sitting at the Sabbath table, celebrating the birth of a newborn grandson. The brit mila (circumcision ceremony) is scheduled for this week.
A neighbor who serves in an elite IDF unit heard the screams as they were being stabbed to death by Abed, and came running with his weapon. He shot and wounded the terrorist, who is alive. Another adult who was sitting at the table — the wife of the son who was murdered — managed to escape with their five children, quickly hiding them and herself in another room and locking the door while calling police.