Drama in Ramat Shlomo: shooting incident on Friday night

The tranquility of the Haredi residents of Ramat Shlomo in Jerusalem was startled on Friday night: a volley of gunfire was heard throughout the neighborhood, nearby the Arabic Shuafat village.

Eli Schreiber, who was in his parents' home in the neighborhood, told Behadrey Haredim that at 1:45am, while sitting in a shull in a Hassidic zitz, he heard three gunshots, and immediately afterwards a volley. "It was scary, we are not used to hearing gunshots around," he says. Schreiber went immediately with his friends towards the source of fire in Goldknopf Street.

He says that the park is on Bucksbaum Street, which was reached by the terrorist who leaned on the fence and fired at youths who were in a nearby garden on Goldknopf Street, a distance of about 70 meters.

Those who sat in the garden told Schreiber that they heard two gunshots, which still did not raise fears in their hearts, but the third bullet hit an iron in the games park, so they understood that someone is shooting at them, and fled for their lives, while another volley was fired at them.

Schreiber also notes that behind the fence - where apparent the terrorist stood, 13 cartridges were identified, in addition to the bullet which was located in the park. "The police asked for help from residents with lighting assistance, and they rushed to homes to bring police flashlights...." he adds.

Police forces including SWAT teams and additional forces assisted by a helicopter searched to locate the shooter, while a forensic team scans the two parks. Since the shooting, residents have felt the increased movement of police and security forces patrolling all over the neighborhood until this time.

Jerusalem police reported that the nature of the incident remains unclear, and it is under investigation.

Director of the Community Council, Ezra Berger, said that the Community Council has been warning officials in charge of security for a while for fear of hostile individuals penetrating the neighborhood, and asked to place cameras and lighting in strategic places in the neighborhood. There is growing concern with the completion of the construction of Highway 21 road directly connecting the neighborhood with nearby Arab settlements.

One should note that in order to avoid the wave of burglaries in the neighborhood Community Council holds motorized patrols on Friday nights in coordination with the Israel Police, and indeed there is a precipitous decrease of 80% of the number of burglaries in homes.

'בחדרי' גם ברשתות החברתיות - הצטרפו!