The Commander of the Samaria Brigade, Col. Itzik Bar, awarded a certificate of gratitude this weekend to nine-year-old Tovia Shtetman of Yitzhar, who successfully fought off a terrorist three weeks ago.
The ceremony took place in Col. Bar's office. Bar said that he was "astounded by the courage and bravery of a child from Yitzhar who resolutely fought off a terrorist despite his thin frame."
The terrorist infiltrated the community at 6:30 a.m. on Saturday, Sept. 13, and set fire to a home. The next door neighbor, Revital Ofan, woke up and saw the Arab terrorist trying to pry his way through her bedroom window. In the meantime, her neighbor Tovia came running to her house to warn her family of the approaching fire.
He then encountered the terrorist, who stabbed him seven times in the back. Tovia fought back and the terrorist's knife broke. The assailant then threw Tovia off the porch into a deep ravine. Tovia sustained light to moderate injuries but none of his internal organs was damaged.
Residents of Yitzhar pursued the terrorist into the nearby Arab village of Asira al-Kabaliya following the attack, although he escaped. Prime Minister Ehud Olmert accused them of carrying out a “pogrom”, after denouncing the attack on the child as “grave and serious,” The terrorist was killed the following Shabat when he returned to Yitzhar and attempted another attack.