Israeli terror victim dies weeks after stabbing

A 55-year-old Israeli man died from his wounds after being stabbed by a Palestinian terrorist weeks ago as he left a store in the nearby Palestinian village of Al-Funduq.

After the stabbing on Oct. 25, Shalom Sofer managed to reach his car and drive to a nearby junction where he was treated by a medic and taken to Sheba Tel HaShomer Hospital in Ramat Gan by military ambulance. Sofer’s condition was first categorized as moderate-to-serious, but he appeared to recover quickly and was sent home.

According to Lidor, Sofer’s son, one of the stab wounds opened on Monday night and Sofer died of blood loss. 

“[My] father had already been home for a week. Everything seemed to be fine, and suddenly one of his wounds opened. Within a few minutes, he lost a lot of blood,” the son told Israel’s Channel 1.

“When he was released [from the hospital], we thanked [God] for the great miracle, and we were sure that, after a day or two, our strong father would return to normal, return to work,” the younger Sofer said. 

Lidor Sofer’s wife, Rachel, alleged that the treatment her father-in-law had received at the hospital was “inadequate” and that he had been discharged too early.

A resident of the Kedumim settlement described Sofer as “a warm-hearted person who helped everybody. He started a business in the settlement and employed quite a few at-risk youths and helped those who dropped out of school.”

The Israel Defense Forces, with intelligence obtained from the Shin Bet – the Israel Security Agency – caught Sofer’s attacker following a brief manhunt. 

After terrorists murdered 19 people in Israel in recent months, the IDF met the sharp increase in violence in Judea and Samaria with an anti-terror campaign resulting in more than 2,000 arrests. Palestinian terrorists have attacked military posts, Israeli troops operating in the area, Israeli communities and Israelis civilians traveling on the roads. 

More than 125 Palestinians and four IDF soldiers have died in the campaign, which has uncovered the involvement of Palestinian Authority security forces in shootouts while the IDF made arrests.

“This is disturbing not only because of the weapons that they as police officers possess, but also because it can turn a colleague into a predator,” Yoav Limor wrote in Israel HaYom.

The IDF reported that eight suspects were detained in raids throughout Judea and Samaria early Tuesday.