Palestinian teen stabs and kills Ari Fuld in a mall
A Palestinian teenager allegedly an American-born Jewish man to death at a West Bank shopping center on Sunday.
Israeli authorities have identified the victim as Ari Fuld, 45, a dual U.S.-Israeli citizen widely known as a vocal pro-Israel activist in the West Bank settler community, Reuters reported.
The Palestinian teen, 17, attacked and stabbed Fuld in the back while the man was at a mall in the Etzion bloc of Jewish settlements, which are about five miles south of Jerusalem.
The assailant was shot and wounded by one of several armed civilians who chased him after the attack, police said.
Fuld reportedly gave chase before succumbing to his wounds. Video footage showed Fuld giving chase and firing at his assailant before collapsing.
U.S. Ambassador to Israel David Friedman lamented the killing of Fuld, whom he called “an American patriot” in a statement Sunday.
“America grieves as one of its citizens was brutally murdered by a Palestinian terrorist,” Friedman wrote on Twitter. “Ari Fuld was a passionate defender of Israel & an American patriot. He represented the best of both countries & will be deeply missed.”
Hamas, the militant group that governs Gaza, did not claim responsibility for the attack but said it was a “natural response to Israeli crimes against Palestinians” in the West Bank.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu lauded Fuld on Facebook for fighting his attacker “heroically” and remembered him as “an advocate for Israel who fought to spread the truth.”
