Six victims of Jaffa terror attack named, as more details about shooting emerge
Hamas claims attack; Ben Gvir suggests nearby mosque involved, should be destroyed; in fact, terrorists threatened worshippers there before carrying out the attack, congregants say
Authorities on Wednesday named six of the seven people killed in Tuesday night’s terror attack at a light rail station in Jaffa, as new details emerged on the two terrorists who carried it out, and the Israeli military imposed a closure on their hometown of Hebron in the West Bank.
Hamas took responsibility for the attack Wednesday, saying its perpetrators, Mohammad Mesek and Ahmad Himouni, were members of the terror group.
Seven people were killed and 16 others wounded in the attack on the Tel Aviv light rail and a nearby road in Jaffa, in one of the deadliest terror attacks in recent memory.
The six victims were named on Wednesday as Revital Bronstein, 24, from Bat Yam; Ilia Nozadze, 42, a Georgian citizen; Shahar Goldman, 30 from Lod; Inbar Segev Vigder, 33, Nadia Sokolenco, 40 and Jonas Chrosis, 26, a Greek citizen. The identities of the final victim was not yet cleared for publication.
Shahar Goldman, a dancer, was married just over a year ago, according to a statement by Lod Mayor Yair Revivo.
Inbar Segev Vigder, who was also married in 2023, is survived by her baby son Ari, born last December. “I had been serving in Gaza, and I came specifically to be with her for the birth,” recalled her husband Yeari. “She was my greatest love and a great mother, full of light and love.”
Revital Bronstein was eulogized on Wednesday by Bat Yam mayor Zvika Brot as “a brilliant programmer and a gifted comic book artist.”
Israeli police and emergency workers stand by a body at the scene of a terror attack in Jaffa, October 1, 2024.
The sixth victim, Jonas Chrosis was a Greek citizen who was living in Jerusalem while he studied architecture in Tel Aviv. “He was kind-hearted and sensitive and always helped everyone,” one of his classmates told Channel 12. “He expressed infinite optimism in the face of every difficulty that came his way. He was talented, funny, and humble. He was always kind to the people around him and was a loyal friend who saw the good in everyone. He was a talented piano player.”
The terrorists, meanwhile, were named as Mohammad Mesek, 19, who was killed at the scene, and Ahmed Himouni, 25, who was seriously injured. Both men are Palestinians from the West Bank city of Hebron who were in Israel proper without a permit.
Diana Svertzov, an Israeli rhythmic gymnast who won a silver medal at the Paris Olympics, was at the light rail station at the time of the attack, and told Channel 12 that the terrorists did not seem suspicious, and one of them was wearing a pin representing solidarity with Israelis held hostage in Gaza by the Hamas terror group.
“One of them looked at my Olympics necklace and smiled at me. They didn’t look like terrorists. One of them had an M16 rifle, and the other one was in a polo shirt, with a hostage pin. There was no reason to be suspicious. It never crossed my mind, what was about to happen,” she said.
Reservists in Israel are often seen carrying rifles while wearing their civilian clothes.
The Israel Defense Forces has imposed a closure on Hebron, the terrorists’ hometown, and on Wednesday, the IDF said it had detained and questioned several people on suspicion of aiding the terrorists in purchasing the assault rifle used in the attack and infiltrating Israel.
It was also revealed on Wednesday that before carrying out the attack, the terrorists entered the Al-Nuzha Mosque, stashed their bags in the mosque’s bathroom, and threatened worshippers not to leave.
One of the terrorists “opened the door, with an M16 in his hand,” Ali, a member of the congregation, told the Ynet news site. He noted that the terrorist had entered the mosque through the women’s entrance.
“He just peeked his head in, and said, ‘Nobody go outside! Anyone who goes out is a dead man,’ and he left. The second one waited outside. They closed the doors, we called the police, and we heard shooting,” Ali said.
Another congregant, identified only by his first Hebrew initial Dalet, told Ynet that the men initially entered the mosque with large backpacks, which they left in the bathroom and from which they took their weapons.
The relation between the two accounts was not immediately clear.
The events at the mosque were spotlighted after National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir declared at the scene of the attack on Tuesday that if the terrorists were revealed to have used the mosque for carrying out the attack, the house of worship must be destroyed — comments that sparked immediate backlash.
Yesh Atid MK Merav Ben Ari said in a statement that Ben Gvir “didn’t just evade responsibility, as per usual, he also threatened the Arab citizens of Jaffa.”
The national security minister “won’t succeed at harming the important coexistence that is kept between Tel Aviv and Jaffa, he should take his racism elsewhere,” she said.
Tensions in Israel and the West Bank have soared since October 7, when terrorists burst through the Gaza border into Israel in a Hamas-led attack, killing some 1,200 people and seizing 251 hostages.
Since then, 40 Israelis, including security personnel, have been killed in Palestinian terror attacks in Israel and the West Bank — including in Tuesday’s attack. Another five members of the security forces were killed in clashes with terror operatives in the West Bank.
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