Murder of Dvir Sorek | |
---|---|
Part of the Israeli–Palestinian conflict | |
Native name | רצח דביר שורק |
Location | Migdal Oz, West Bank |
Date | 7 August 2019 20:30 pm (UTC+2) |
Attack type | Attempted hostage-taking, stabbing |
Weapons | Knife, taser |
Deaths | 1 civilian (Dvir Sorek) |
No. of participants | 2 |
Motive | Anti-Semitism |
On 7 August 2019, [1] 18-year-old yeshiva student Dvir Sorek [2] was stabbed to death near the Israeli settlement of Migdal Oz. [3]
Sorek was an 18-year-old Yeshiva student, was traveling alone from his yeshiva (named Machanayim) to Jerusalem to buy books for his rabbis as a gift for the end of the school year. He was apparently attacked on his way back, by (it was believed) two assailants, near a bus stop. Despite initially believing that his death was a kidnapping, Israeli security forces came to the conclusion that Soreks' death was a premeditated murder. [4]
Two Palestinian men, 24-year-old Nazir Saleh Khalil Atafra and 30-year-old Qasem Araf Khalil Atafra, were arrested for the murder. Their houses were demolished. [5]
His funeral was held in Ofra, where Sorek’s family resided, the next day and thousands of people attended. Sorek’s father performed the eulogy. The funeral was interrupted by Palestinian fireworks and celebrations in the neighboring town of Silwad. [2]
Two Palestinians accused of the murder were captured by Israeli soldiers in the village of Beit Kahil outside Hebron. The suspects were identified as 24-year-old Nazir Saleh Khalil Atafra, a Hamas activist, and 30-year-old Qasem Araf Khalil Atafra. [9]