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LA Times: Security Officers Killed in Terror Attack Embodied “Nearly the Full Rainbow of Israeli Society”

The three security guards killed on Tuesday’s terror attack were described by the Los Angeles Times as representing “nearly the full rainbow of Israeli society,” —one was an Israeli-Arab and the other two were Israelis, one of whom was of Ethiopian extraction—were buried later in the day.

The funeral of Yousef Ottman, an Israeli-Arab, was held in his home village of Abu Ghosh. His father, Issam, told The Times of Israel that he was proud of his son, saying, “He stopped the terrorist from getting into the village at the time children were just going to school. He jumped on the terrorist and got a bullet in the chest that took his life.” He added that he, “shares in the sorrow of the other families who lost their children this day.”

Mourners at the tent set up by the family included residents of Abu Ghosh, his former colleagues from the Border Police, as well as residents of Har Adar, the community he was protecting. He was described as friendly and as an exemplary member of an elite unit of the Border Police. Ottman had worked as a security guard to earn money to go to university.

Ottman’s funeral was attended by police officials, members of Knesset, and Culture and Sports Minister Miri Regev.

“As human beings we condemn every act of violence on any side, doesn’t matter if it’s Jewish or Arab. Fact of the matter is that the security guards were both Arab and Jews. This shows that violence and killing has no father and mother. It can hurt every innocent human being,” Issa Jaber, the mayor of Abu Ghosh, told The Israel Project. “We need to think differently and end these acts through dialogue and not let extremists act in order to damage the relationship between the two people because the vast majority is against this violence. The vast majority of Palestinians and Israelis are pro-peace and want to live in peace and quiet.”

Jabbar described Ottman as someone “who got along with everyone,” and a “young guy who was popular across the village.”

Or Arish, a resident of Har Adar, was another security guards who was killed in the attack. Arish was working as a security guard following his army service as a paratrooper, in order to earn money for university. He was described as a “charming boy everyone loved.”

Solomon Gavriyah, a border policeman and Israeli-born son of Ethiopian immigrants, was described as “the salt of the earth; a true patriot,” by Nissim Gozlan, the mayor of the town Beer Yaakov located in southern Israel. Gozlan told the Israel’s Army Radio that that Gavriyah was an excellent student who had dedicated himself to serving his country.

While Israel mourned the security guards who were killed, Hamas and the Nablus chapter of Fatah, representing the two major Palestinian political factions, showed support for the terror attack.

The European Union has condemned both the terror attack and the Hamas praise for it saying that, “There can be no justification for such a crime and attempts by Hamas to glorify the attack are reprehensible. Violence and terror will only achieve more loss and pain and must stop.”

The United States embassy in Tel Aviv and the consulate in Jerusalem issued a joint statement condemning the terror attack and all statements praising the attack, “We condemn in the strongest possible terms today’s horrific attack in Har Adar.‎ We also condemn statements glorifying terrorism and call on all to send a clear message that terrorism must never be tolerated. Our thoughts and prayers are with the families of the victims who were killed and we hope for a quick and full recovery of the injured.”

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called on Abbas to condemn the attack.

[Photo: Twitter]