Sunday, September 01, 2013

1-Sep-13: Breaking: One of Jerusalem's most strikingly Arab-friendly precincts is revealed as latest target of jihadists

Mamilla Mall [Image Source]
The week of Jewish New Year, and we're reminded of what a desirable target holiday-minded Israelis are in the eyes of the people who simmer with religiously-inspired hatred. This is from Times of Israel:
Two men, aged 22 and 25, have confessed to planning a terror attack in Jerusalem at the Mamilla Mall, near the Old City, police sources revealed on Sunday. The men, who worked as cleaning staff at the mall, planned to use their access to plant a bomb in a trash can at the popular shopping center during the holiday season. They were apprehended several weeks ago in a combined operation of the Israel Police, Border Police, IDF and the Shin Bet security agency. Three additional men were arrested in connection with the plot, which was already at an advanced stage of planning when it was foiled, according to police. The suspects were reportedly recruited by a Hamas cell operating out of Ramallah. The men are residents of Shuafat, an East Jerusalem neighborhood, and therefore have blue Israeli identity cards, allowing them access to Jerusalem without going through the security check that most West Bank Palestinians must undergo. Mamila Mall is an upscale shopping district adjacent to Jaffa Gate that is especially popular with tourists.
We know Mamilla well enough. Go there anytime, as every Jerusalemite and most tourists will confirm, and you will witness the free and easy interaction of relaxed shoppers and sightseers from all parts of Israeli society and especially - because their distinctive garb often makes them so easy to see - Palestinian Arabs.

Anyone with a passing familiarity with the way jihadism works will know this enrages the men with the bombs and those who send them.

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