ראובן בירמכר הי"ד
ראובן בירמכר הי"דCourtesy of the family

Last night (Monday) IDF Border Police forces and the Civil Administration destroyed the homes of terrorists Issa Yassin Yousef Assaf and Anan Mohammed Saleh Hamad in the Qalandia refugee camp.

The two terrorists carried out the stabbing attack near Jerusalem's Jaffa Gate last December, which left Rabbi Reuven Biermacher and Ofer Ben Ari dead and a third victim wounded.

There were riots in Qalandia as the houses were demolished, with the Arabs throwing rocks and cinder blocks. Shots were also fired at the soldiers.

IDF troops and Border Police responded with riot control measures and live ammunition injuring six Palestinians. In addition, IDF forces seized an M16 assault rifle, two pipe bombs and several bottles of flammable paint.

Ofer Ben-Ari was killed in the attack as he confronted the terrorists. Border Police fired at the terrorists, accidentally hitting and killing Ben Ari.

A month after the attack, Ben Ari's family were invited to the office of Minister of Public Security, Gilad Erdan, for an emotional encounter with the Border Police officers who accidentally killed him.

"No words can comfort the widow Yifat and her daughters Ofek and Gaya. There are just no words. The pain of the death of the late Ofer is huge. Despite the painful catastrophe, the Border Police officers who arrived at the scene acted exactly as was expected of them, working to quickly end the event," said Erdan.

''When I see these brave policewomen hugging these noble daughters and wife, I am filled with enormous pride for the people of Israel. There is no [other] nation like this."