IDF demolishes home of Duvdevan soldier's killer
Four-story building that was home of Islam Abu Hamid, who killed Staff Sgt. Ronen Lubarsky by dropping a marble slab on him, demolished; Hamid's mother says she's not deterred, will rebuild house: 'As long as there is occupation on our lands, we will continue our resistance.'
IDF troops demolished Thursday night the home of Islam Abu Hamid, who killed Staff Sgt. Ronen Lubarsky by dropping a marble slab on him during military operations in the al-Am'ari refugee camp near Ramallah in May.
The force, which included Lubarsky's friends from the elite Duvdevan unit, had to close off a large area of the camp to carry out the demolition of the four-story home. The third and fourth floor of the building were blown up, while the two lower floors collapsed because of the explosion.
The troops came under attack by dozens of Palestinians at the camp, who hurled stones at them. The forces used crowd dispersal measures; there were not injuries among the soldiers.
Hamid's mother defiantly stated the demolition will not deter her, saying her home is a "sacrifice for the Palestinian people," and insisting it will be rebuilt.
"As long as there is occupation on our lands, we will continue our resistance," she said.
Palestinian Minister Walid Assaf said the family will receive an alternative home and that the Palestinian Authority will work to rebuild the home as quickly as possible.
The IDF informed the Abu Hamid family of its plans to demolish the entire four-story building in September. Two weeks ago, the High Court of Justice rejected the family's petition against the demolition and gave them 10 days to prepare.
Two weeks after the attack, soldiers from the IDF's elite Duvdevan unit raided the al-Am'ari refugee camp and pulled their friend's killer out of bed. Hamid was arrested and brought to Israel to stand trial.
Hamid, who was hiding in a different house in the crowded and violent refugee camp, has already served five years in Israeli prison for his involvement in a Hamas-led shooting attack.He comes from a family of Hamas terrorists behind several attacks that killed Israelis in the past.
Four of his brothers, also Hamas members, are serving life sentences for their involvement in murderous terror attacks during the second intifada, including the 2002 Seafood Market attack in Tel Aviv that claimed the lives of three Israelis.
One of the brothers is serving a life sentence for the 1994 shooting of Shin Bet operative Noam Cohen.
Half of the Hamid family is affiliated with Hamas and the other with Fatah. Hamid's elder brother is one of the founders of the al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades and the right hand of Marwan Barghouti.
In the wake of the last week's wave of terror attacks, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered the IDF to increase its steps in fighting terrorism and demanded to expedite the demolition of Abu Kahmid's house as well the house of terrorist Ashraf Na'alwa, who murdered two Israelis in a shooting attack at the Barkan industrial area in the West Bank. Netanyahu, who is also the defense minister, also ordered to increase administrative detentions of Hamas members in the West Bank and set up more roadblocks and checkpoints.
While Netanyahu also instructed to revoke work permits of terrorists' relatives, it appears the move would not be sweeping and would only include the families of two of the terrorists involved in recent attacks. Furthermore, the permits will not be permanently revoked, but rather frozen temporarily for up to a year.
The families of Salah Barghouti, who was killed by the YAMAM near Ramallah last week, and another terrorist—both involved in the Ofra shooting attack that claimed the life of a baby born prematurely after his mother was shot—have ties to Hamas, and would have normally been denied work permits from the IDF.
