A group of haredi Jews from Israel was attacked Tuesday near the Poland-Ukraine border by an antisemitic assailant who shouted threats and hurled antisemitic slurs at them.
The incident occurred as the group was traveling back to Poland from Haditch, Ukraine.
One member of the group recounted that they stopped at a gas station to purchase water. “At first he just said ‘hello,’ but when we replied ‘hello,’ he began shouting and cursing in Ukrainian. It escalated to the point that even our driver, who is Ukrainian himself, was frightened and stepped aside," he said.
One of the young men in the group, who speaks some Ukrainian, attempted to calm the attacker. However, the assailant approached the vehicle, forced open the doors, and began throwing bottles and tossing belongings out of the car.
He continued to hurl antisemitic insults at the group, telling them, “Even in Israel they hate you."
Moti Alboim, CEO of the Chevra Kadisha in Kfar Saba and a senior ZAKA volunteer, intervened and placed himself between the attacker and the group. “His friends somehow managed to pull him a couple of meters away from the vehicle. We then got into the car and drove off. The entire incident was frightening. Our driver claims he also saw a weapon in the attacker’s vehicle, but we do not know if that is true," Albom said.