Dawabsheh grandfather rejects PM's claims of justice to Jewish terrorists
Among other points made in his UN speech, Netanyahu also claimed that Israel invested every available resource in bringing the culprits of the arson attack, that killed the Palestinian Dawabsheh family, to justice; Hussein Dawabsheh, who lost his daughter, son-in-law and grandson in the fire, refutes this claim and says that it was ‘certainly not the Israeli government’ that took care of his surviving grandson, Ahmed.
Hussein Dawabsheh, the grandfather of Ahmed Dawabsheh—who sustained serious burns after Jewish extremists killed his parents along with their 18-month-old child in an arson attack last June—refuted Prime Minister Netanyahu's portrayal of the support Israel supposedly offered Ahmed and his extended family in the aftermath of the attack.
During his speech before the UN General Assembly on Thursday, Netanyahu spoke about “the profound difference” he sees between Israeli and Palestinian societies, citing Israel's response to the attack which included the arrest and arraignment of the suspects.
“Take the tragic case of Ahmed Dawabsheh.” Said Netanyahu. “I’ll never forget visiting Ahmed in the hospital just hours after he was attacked. A little boy, really a baby, he was badly burned. Ahmed was the victim of a horrible terrorist act perpetrated by Jews. He lay bandaged and unconscious as Israeli doctors worked around the clock to save him.”
“No words can bring comfort to this boy or to his family,” continued Netanyahu. “Still, as I stood by his bedside I told his uncle, ‘This is not our people. This is not our way.’ I then ordered extraordinary measures to bring Ahmed’s assailants to justice and today the Jewish citizens of Israel accused of attacking the Dawabsheh family are in jail awaiting trial.”
“Now, for some, this story shows that both sides have their extremists and both sides are equally responsible for this seemingly endless conflict. But what Ahmed’s story actually proves is the very opposite. It illustrates the profound difference between our two societies, because while Israeli leaders condemn terrorists, all terrorists, Arabs and Jews alike, Palestinian leaders celebrate terrorists. While Israel jails the handful of Jewish terrorists among us, the Palestinians pay thousands of terrorists among them.”
While not denying that Netanyahu did indeed visit the victim, Hussein Dawabsheh rejected the notion that Israel provided assistance: “Netanyahu did visit our family in the hospital, but it was the doctors and hospital that took care of him, and it certainly wasn’t the Israeli government,” Hussein insisted.
He also rejected Netanyahu’s view of a fundamental difference between both societies. “I don’t agree with his statements on the difference between our cultures, about how Jewish leaders come out against terrorism and Arabs don’t. Moreover, his statement about how the State of Israel allocated resources to punish the murderers is absolutely untrue. It’s been a year and three months, and the trial is not yet finished. We haven’t seen the accused being punished and there has been a general foot-dragging,” Hussein contended.
Earlier in his speech, Netanyahu stated that the Palestinian leadership and society both work to indoctrinate its young population to hate Israel.
“Imagine your child undergoing this brainwashing. Imagine what it takes for a young boy or girl to break free out of this culture of hate. Some do, but far too many don’t. How can any of us expect young Palestinians to support peace when their leaders poison their minds against peace?”
Dawabsheh was also quoted as saying, “They claim the accused in the murders is not yet an adult and that he wasn’t responsible for his actions. When we come to court, his friends taunt us by asking, ‘Where’s Ali?’ ‘Where’s Riham?’ With a Palestinian terrorist, they manage to achieve justice much quicker.”
