Fourth Person Dies in Jerusalem Bus Stop Attack; Israeli Hero Hit by Friendly Fire

The Israeli citizen who jumped out of his car to shoot two Hamas terrorists as they attacked a Jerusalem bus station on Thursday was reportedly killed by friendly fire from two off-duty Israeli soldiers after he dropped his gun, raised his hands, and shouted: “Don’t shoot.”

Yuval Castleman was taken to Sha’arei Tzedek Hospital in Jerusalem in critical condition and was declared dead shortly before midnight, on what would have been his 38th birthday.

His family says he was “executed” by the soldiers, and now calls are being made for Israel to reexamine “trigger-happy” policies. 

On Thursday morning, two Palestinians jumped out of a car on Weizmann Boulevard at the main entrance to the capital and opened fire at people waiting for the bus. CCTV footage shows the attackers spraying passers-by with bullets from an M-16 automatic rifle and a handgun. Three people were killed and six wounded.

Castelman was first on the scene and ran across a busy road firing at the terrorists. Then, the footage shows, two Israeli soldiers jumped out of a car with assault rifles and began shooting, first at the terrorists and then at Castelman.

Video taken from an apartment above the bus station clearly shows Castelman, in a green shirt, being shot.

“Yuval noticed a terrorist attack from the other side of the road while driving to his job at the government complex, and stopped his car to stop the terrorists,” Channel 13 quoted his family as saying on Friday.

“He had previously served in the security forces and was always a hero and the first to jump in and save lives, which he did this time as well.”

The video shows Castelman throwing away his gun, falling to his knees, and raising his hands in the air as he shouts “Don’t shoot,” in Hebrew. Two sets of shots ring out and Castelman can be seen crumpling to the ground.

“No one has yet spoken to us officially. We want to know exactly what happened. In the footage, you can see that he charges at the terrorists and neutralizes them, and suddenly they shoot him,” Castleman’s father, Moshe, told the TV channel.

“They didn’t read the situation correctly. Right now, I can’t be judgmental, what would I have done in that situation,” he said. “But I want them to thoroughly investigate this and draw conclusions from the incident.”

Israeli security forces have been condemned in the past for shooting and killing terror suspects even after they have been disarmed and no longer pose a threat, in contravention of open-fire orders.

After initially saying it had no plans to investigate the incident, the IDF changed tack on Friday, saying that following the findings of an initial probe by the Shin Bet and Israel Police, it was decided that the Military Police’s investigatory unit — known in Hebrew by its acronym METZACH —  would also take part in the probe.

Police in a statement Friday said they were continuing to probe the attack, the Times of Israel reported.

“The findings of the investigation so far indicate that during the attack, one of the IDF soldiers identified and mistakenly suspected the late Yuval — who acted bravely and courageously to neutralize the terrorists — as a third terrorist,” police said. “The same soldier also fired at him which led to his serious injury and tragic death.”

Hamas claimed responsibility for the bus stop attack, saying the shooters were members of its military wing, the Al-Qassam Brigades.