2015 Jerusalem bus attack

On 13 October 2015, two Palestinian terrorists, armed with a firearm and a knife boarded a bus in the Jewish neighborhood of East Talpiot, Jerusalem, and started attacking and stabbing the passengers. One of the assailants tried to take control on the bus and locked the bus door to prevent the passengers from escaping. Police arrived, killed one of the assailants and neutralized the other. Three civilians were killed and 15 wounded.[1][2] One of the wounded succumbed to his wounds on 27 October 2015.[3]

Attack

Elian reportedly obtained a gun and a knife in preparation for the attack, in which Gaanam agreed to participate. The two rode a motorbike from Jabel Mukaber, where they lived, to the nearby Jewish neighborhood of Armon Hanatziv, where they boarded a bus with the weapons concealed in their clothing. They rode the bus until more passengers had boarded, then began the attack. Gaanam shot fellow passengers, while Elian stabbed them. After Gaanam ran out of bullets, he tried to strangle a passenger. Elian was killed by security who rushed to the scene; Gaanam survived.[4]

Facebook connection

According to Micah Lakin Avni, son of one of the murdered Richard Lakin, Bahas Alian (Elian) posted a will on Facebook referring to martyrdom. Avni found other Facebook pages exhorting users to kill Jews and showing a chart demonstrating where to stab victims.[5][6][7] Following the attack, advocates of Palestinian terrorism posted reenactments of the attack on Facebook. Lakin's son, Micah Avni, a venture capitalist who invests in information technology companies, became an activist campaigning to persuade Facebook not to host pages that advocate terrorism.[7]

Trial, convictions, sentencing

Balal Abu Gaanam (21,) of Jabel Mukaber, was convicted of murder. He had been a supporter of Hamas for several years. He was sentenced to three consecutive life sentences for murder, plus 70 years' imprisonment for seven convictions of attempted murder.[8]

The homes of Elian and Gaanam homes were razed, and the sites sealed off by security forces.[4]

Victims

15 civilians were wounded in the attack.[1]

Chaim Haviv, 78 and Alon Govberg, 51, were killed during the attack.[1]

Richard Lakin, 76, was shot in the head, stabbed in the chest, and succumbed to his wounds on October 27.[1] Lakin, who grew up in Newton, Massachusetts,[9] was civil rights advocate and the principal of the Hopewell Elementary School in Waterbury, Connecticut before moving his to Israel in 1984 with his wife, Karen Gordon Lakin, and their children.[10][6][11][6] Richard and Karen Lakin met as students at Boston University and were Freedom Riders who marched with the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.[10][11][12] After moving to Israel, Lakin taught English to mixed classes of Arabs and Jews.[11][12]

Hopewell Elementary School erected a memorial plaque in Lakin's honor.[13]

Impact

MK Revital Swid, supported by the efforts of Lakin's son, Micah Lakin Avni, proposed the "Lakin bill" to require Facebook and other media companies to remove content that poses a danger to personal, public or state security. Although the bill did not become law, according to Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked, by the summer of 2016, Facebook had voluntarily removed 95 percent of 158 inciting posts, while YouTube, was removing 80 percent of 13 videos the government requested that it remove.[14][15]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Wave of terror 2015-2018". Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs. 18 March 2018. Retrieved 10 May 2018.
  2. ↑ Ben Zikri, Almog; Hasson, Nir; Kubovich, Yanir (13 October 2015). "3 Israelis Killed, 20 Wounded in Terror Attacks in Jerusalem, Central Israel". Haaretz.
  3. ↑ Hasson, Nir (27 October 2015). "Jerusalem Bus Attack Claims Third Life: Richard Lakin". Haaretz.
  4. 1 2 Eisenbud, Daniel (14 June 2016). "Terrorist convicted of 3 murders, including Richard Lakin, in J'lem attack". Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 10 May 2018.
  5. ↑ Fulford, Robert (7 November 2015). "The Facebook Intifada". National Post. Retrieved 10 May 2018.
  6. 1 2 3 Rudoren, Jodi (28 October 2015). "Death Came on the No. 78 Bus". New York Times. Retrieved 10 May 2018.
  7. 1 2 Miller, Michael (30 October 2015). "Does Facebook share responsibility for an American peace activist's brutal murder in Israel?: Richard Lakin used social media to spread messages of peace. His killers allegedly used the same Web sites to plot his murder". Washington Post. Retrieved 10 May 2018.
  8. ↑ Yonah, Jeremy Bob (4 June 2016). "Terrorist convicted of 3 murders, including Richard Lakin, in J'lem attack". Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 10 May 2018.
  9. ↑ Remz, Jeffrey (6 November 2016). "Terrorist victim Richard Lakin remembered at Newton rally for Israel". The Jewish Advocate. Retrieved 10 May 2018.
  10. 1 2 Sofer, Barbara (5 August 2016). "Endings". Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 10 May 2018.
  11. 1 2 3 "Jewish advocate of coexistence slain". Los Angeles Times. AP. 29 October 2015. Retrieved 10 May 2018.
  12. 1 2 Lazaroff, Tovah; Harov, Lahav (22 March 2016). "Terror victim's son calls on Human Rights Council to condemn dad's murder". Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 10 May 2018.
  13. ↑ Marteka, Peter (2 September 2016). "Glastonbury: Hopewell School: Honoring Richard Lakin's Legacy: Plaque A Tribute For Slain Educator". Hartford Courant. Retrieved 10 May 2018.
  14. ↑ Harkov, Lahav (13 September 2016). "'Facebook removed 95% of incitement to terrorism at government's request.' MKs, social media giant agree to form task force. Option of law forcing social networks' hand is still on table". Jerusaelm Post. Retrieved 10 May 2018.
  15. ↑ Eisenbud, Daniel (23 September 2016). "In the name of his father. Terrorist victim Richard Lakin's son ensures legacy". Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 11 May 2018.

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