When rocks kill: Personal testimony

Extending the theme of personal testimony this morning a little further than it should go, I want to turn to the IDF Blog for a report you won’t catch in the mainstream media:

On September 23, 2011, Asher Palmer, 25, was driving with his infant son, Yonatan, on Route 60 near Kiryat Arba. He was headed towards Jerusalem to visit his pregnant wife. Driving in the opposite direction was former Palestinian Authority security officer Waal al-Arjeh and his accomplice Ali Saadeh. As they crossed paths, al-Arjeh hurled a large rock that pierced the windshield of Asher’s car, hitting him in the head and causing the car to crash on the side of the road. Asher and his son died upon impact.

This week, over a year and half after the incident, justice was finally served. Waal al-Arjeh was convicted of murder for the deaths of Asher and Yonatan in a military court. Among the counts against him were two counts of manslaughter, 22 counts of attempted manslaughter and three counts of hurling objects at moving vehicles. This historic ruling is unique – it is the first time a person has been convicted of murder for stone throwing and this could set the precedent for cases in the future.

The Jerusalem Post has more on the case here, noting that this former PA “security officer” was a pioneer of sorts. He will undoubtedly have a street or square or park within the domain of the Palestinian Authority named after him some time soon, for he is “the ringleader of a gang that developed this method to kill Jews. They had tried it many times before.”

For illustrative purposes the IDF posts the video below with the comment: “Imagine if this were heading towards your windshield next time you were driving.”

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