Two east Jerusalem Palestinians, 16 and 29, indicted for attempted murder

According to the first indictment, on the morning of December 27, Saeed Komboz, 29, of east Jerusalem, plotted to murder Jews to become a “martyr.”

By DANIEL K. EISENBUD
Updated: JANUARY 19, 2016 01:20
Rock-throwing in east Jerusalem in July 2014. (photo credit: SETH J. FRANTZMAN)
Rock-throwing in east Jerusalem in July 2014.
(photo credit: SETH J. FRANTZMAN)
The Jerusalem District Attorney’s Office on Monday filed indictments against a male Palestinian teenager and a Palestinian man, both for attempted murder, stemming from separate recent knife attacks in the capital.
According to the first indictment, on the morning of December 27, Saeed Komboz, 29, of east Jerusalem, plotted to die murdering Jews in order to become a “martyr.”
After procuring a kitchen knife, Komboz traveled to the capital’s crowded central bus station to find a victim, the indictment stated.
Komboz picked out a soldier in his early 20s shortly after 7 a.m. on Hatzvi Street, stalked him until he appeared vulnerable, and stabbed him in his right shoulder, the indictment stated.
“When he saw that his goal [of killing the soldier] was not achieved, Komboz tried to stab him two more times, until he was neutralized by a security guard,” the indictment continued. The prosecution asked to detain the suspect until the conclusion of legal proceedings.
The unidentified soldier was initially treated at the scene by concerned passersby, who attempted to stanch the bleeding until Magen David Adom paramedics arrived. They took him to Hadassah-University Medical Center in Ein Kerem, where he was admitted in good condition.
Komboz was charged with attempted murder and possession of a deadly weapon.
The second indictment was filed against an unnamed 16-year-old Palestinian boy, who also stated that he wanted to kill Jews and become a martyr. On January 4, the teen left his east Jerusalem home armed with a four-inch switchblade and rode by bus to Bar Lev Street at approximately 5:30 p.m., the indictment stated.
When the suspect spotted two police officers, the indictment states, he charged them with the drawn knife before being shot in the leg by one of the officers. He remains in police custody and is being charged with attempted murder and possession of a deadly weapon.