JERUSALEM, Jan. 7 (JTA) — A 15-year-old Arab crashed a car into a bakery in Jerusalem’s crowded Machane Yehuda outdoor market this week, killing one person and injuring six others. Police said an initial inquiry showed that Tuesday’s incident was a traffic accident. But they did not rule out other possibilities, including a terror attack. According to witnesses, the youth, a resident of the Kalandia refugee camp north of Jerusalem, drove the car out of an alley and rammed full speed into the shop on Jaffa Road. The Arab, who did not have a license, worked at one of the vegetable stalls in the market and was driving his employer’s car. The youth told investigators that the brakes on the car failed. Police said one possibility was that the youth stepped on the gas pedal instead of the brake. Investigators detained the owner of the vegetable stall for questioning. He was suspected of allowing his employee to drive the car, knowing that the youth did not have a license. The crash victims were evacuated to Jerusalem hospitals, where one of them, 72-year-old Yosef Cohen of Beersheba, later died of his injuries. Two victims sustained serious injuries; the injuries of the remaining victims were described as moderate to light.
JTA has documented Jewish history in real-time for over a century. Keep our journalism strong by joining us in supporting independent, award-winning reporting.
