
Omar al-Abed, the terrorist who murdered three Israelis in a stabbing attack in the community of Halamish on Friday evening, identified with the Hamas terrorist organization and was arrested several times by Palestinian security forces, Channel 2 News reported.
Some two hours before the attack, al-Abed published a post on Facebook in which he said he decided to carry it out because of the “harm” done do the Al-Aqsa Mosque.
"I am 20 years old and I have many dreams and I believe they will come true," the terrorist wrote. "I love life and I love to make others happy, but there is no life after what you see in the Al-Aqsa Mosque and the murder of women and young people."
"I only have a knife, where are the other young men who have weapons? I ask my family to forgive me. I know I will not come back, I am on my way to heaven,” he added.
Al-Abed broke into a home in Halamish in the middle of a family Shabbat dinner, stabbing four people. Three people were pronounced dead at the scene, while the fourth was taken for treatment at the Shaare Zedek Hospital in Jerusalem.
Al-Abed was shot by a neighbor and suffered serious injuries.
The attack took place hours after clashes between Israeli security forces and Arab rioters in Jerusalem and nearby towns and cities, in which four Palestinian Arabs were reportedly killed.
The clashes began after the Cabinet decided overnight Thursday that the magnetometers will remain at the entrance to the Temple Mount as part of the new security measures at the compound.
The magnetometers were placed at the site following last Friday’s terrorist attack at the complex, in which two Druze policemen were murdered.
(Arutz Sheva’s North American desk is keeping you updated until the start of Shabbat in New York. The time posted automatically on all Arutz Sheva articles, however, is Israeli time.)