The United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Friday strongly condemned the ramming attack that took place at a bus station in the Ramot neighborhood of Jerusalem, in which two people were murdered and five others were injured.
In a statement quoted by the UAE’s official WAM news agency, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation affirmed that the UAE “expresses its strong condemnation of these criminal acts and its permanent rejection of all forms of violence and terrorism aimed at undermining security and stability in contravention of human values and principles.”
The Ministry “expressed its sincere condolences to the Israeli government and its people and its sympathy to the families of the victims of this heinous crime, as well as its wishes for a speedy recovery for all the injured,” the statement added.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken condemned the deadly terrorist attack in the Ramot neighborhood of Jerusalem as well.
“We strongly condemn today's terrorist attack on civilians, including children, at a bus stop in Jerusalem and express our condolences to the families of those killed,” said Blinken.
“The deliberate targeting of innocent civilians is repugnant and unconscionable. The United States extends our deepest sympathies to the injured, and we stand firmly with them in the face of this attack,” added the Secretary of State.
Countries in Europe similarly condemned the attack in statements on Friday.
“Deeply shocked and saddened by the terror attack in East Jerusalem. Our thoughts and condolences go to the families of the innocent victims. We strongly condemn this senseless violence,” Italy’s Embassy in Israel said in a statement.
Germany’s Foreign Office said it condemns the attack “in the strongest possible terms”.
“Our thoughts are with the families of the victims and we wish those injured a swift recovery. To deprive terrorism of its breeding grounds, political dialogue and more cooperation are urgently needed,” it added.
The French Embassy in Israel also issued a statement condemning the attack.
“Another attack struck this afternoon in East Jerusalem. A ramming attack that killed at least two people and injured a number of people. From the bottom of our hearts, we stand by the relatives of the victims of this cowardly act of terrorism. The violence must stop,” it said.
The two people who were murdered in Friday’s ramming attack were identified as Alter Shlomo Lederman, a 20-year-old Yeshiva student, and Yaakov Yisrael Paley, a six-year-old boy.
Paley was laid to rest in a small funeral before the start of Shabbat, at the request of his family. Paley’s father, who was moderately injured in the attack, is hospitalized and could not attend his son’s funeral.
Lederman, who was a student at the Tal Torah Yeshiva in Bnei Brak, suffered critical injuries in the ramming attack and was rushed to Shaare Zedek Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
Lederman had been standing at the bus stop with his wife, whom he married only six months ago, at the time of the attack. The two were waiting for a bus to the city of Elad, where they had planned to spend Shabbat with his parents. The wife was unharmed.
(Israel National News' North American desk is keeping you updated until the start of Shabbat in New York. The time posted automatically on all Israel National News articles, however, is Israeli time.)