Internal Security Minister Yitzhak Aharonovich (Yisrael Beytenu) visited the shiva (mourning) house Friday of the parents of three-month-old Chaya Zisel Braun, hy”d, the baby who was murdered after a Hamas terrorist rammed his car into a crowd of pedestrians Wednesday night.
“There are no words I can say to comfort a young couple who have lost their innocent little daughter,” Aharonovich stated, adding that he would “take punitive measures against the killer by sealing or destroying his home.”
Aharonovich then met with Jewish residents of the nearby Nof Tzion neighborhood after the shiva call, in an apparent attempt to appease the hundreds of frustrated protesters who gathered Thursday night to protest police and government laxity regarding terror in Jerusalem.
The protesters called for government action, shouting “Arab beware, Jewish blood will not be abandoned,” along with “the nation demands to expel the Arabs, death to terrorists.”
Violence in Jerusalem has been snowballing in recent months, in the “silent intifada” that broke out after the “revenge killing” of Arab teen Mohammed Abu-Khdeir by a mentally unwell man in July, after the abduction and murder of three Israeli teens resulting in a constant cycle of violent Arab rioting.
According to the most recent Israel Security Agency (ISA or Shin Bet) report on Jerusalem, terror has risen dramatically in the city since then – from 22 incidents in May and June to 152 in July and August, a whopping 509% increase.
While the Israel Police stated at the end of September that over 600 arrests had been made, it did little to stop the constant cycle of violence.
Aharonovich, along with Police Commissioner Yohanan Danino, has become a focal point for criticism over what many perceive as an inadequate response to the attacks – prompting much drama around goings-on in the police and the government over how the attacks have been handled.
Frustration over Aharonovich’s career appears to have come to a head as well after a series of other attacks were played down by his Ministry, including the murder of 27-year-old construction worker Netanel Arami hy”d last month and 19-year-old Shelly Dadon hy”d earlier this year.
