Of course. I’m sure most of you who read the article we posted the other day when the heroic Palestinian man came to the rescue of the five American Jewish students who took a wrong turn into an Arab neighborhood and barely escaped with their lives – I’m sure you all knew this man would probably attacked and threatened for doing this.
Well, that’s exactly what’s happening:
TIMES OF ISRAEL – Faiz Abu Hamadiah of Hebron in the West Bank says he has been receiving death threats over the past few days, ever since he gave shelter to five American Jewish tourists who entered the city in their car and were attacked by a Palestinian mob.
In an interview with Channel 2 aired Sunday evening, Hamadiah said people threatened to “burn his house down, or cut off his head” in the wake of the incident Thusday.
The 51-year-old was characterized by the interviewer as “a hero.” But he brushed off the praise, saying, “I’m not a hero; this is what every person should have done. I did it because I’m a human being. In all my heart, I’m a man of peace.”
The five Americans, yeshiva students, were attacked after they took a wrong turn in the city while en route to the Cave of the Patriarchs, an ancient holy site revered by both Jews and Muslims. Two of the students, residents of Brooklyn, New York, were injured when Palestinian assailants attacked their car with rocks and firebombs.
The five were whisked away by Hamadiah, who let them hide in his house until Israel security forces arrived to extract them.
According to Sunday’s report, it took the Israeli forces more than an hour to arrive.
Hamadiah showed the interviewer a machete that he “keeps by the door,” and said he was prepared to use it against anyone who attempted to enter his home to harm the students, even at the risk of endangering his own life, he said.
“I was afraid… that men in ski masks would come and give us trouble. [But I knew I would defend them], even if it risked my life and the lives of my children,” Hamadiah said.
“This is my worldview,” he explained. “Either you are human, or you don’t do it and then you aren’t human.”
I love how he explained he was willing to risk his life and that of his family to protect these Jewish students from the Muslim mob. Sadly I fear he is still risking his life and that of his family with the Muslim mob now threatening to kill him or burn his house down. I pray for his safety.
As I said before, I really hope these Jewish families reward Hamadiah greatly. His heroism is inspiring.