Israellycool reader, real-life friend and fellow blogger Gedalia posts about a possible anti-Semitic/anti-Israel attack that occurred in Perth a few nights ago.
This story started last Thursday. I received a call from a friend in Melbourne. Usual story – there are two Israeli backpackers coming to Perth. Can I take them in for Shabbat, help them find accomodation and work while they travel around Western Australia for a few months. Kol Yisrael Aravim zeh la zeh – Jewish people look after each other like family, no matter where you are in the world . So we fed and housed our friends and arranged accomodation over the weekend.
All was OK, until late last night. My phone was on silent, but as I walked past I saw the screen flashing. I noted it was the number of one of the Israeli backpakers. My initial reaction was that they wanted another lead or some connections and the matter could wait until tomorrow. But something in my gut made me pick up the phone. The guy said to me in broken words that he had been “beaten up” and was in the city, could I help. He could not give me directions, but he was outside the bus-station at the Northbridge link.
I called the police, and jumped in a car with a friend. We arrived at the same time as the police. They had been lying on a blood splattered pavement for at least half an hour. Even as we were pulling up there were people walking past. Not one person had stopped to help them. One of the Israeli’s was lying on the ground in acute pain. He had been hit in the face, kicked to the ground and thought his leg was broken. The other had had his head viced between a wall and a pillar and crushed. They were roughed up pretty badly.
We established with the guys, one of which appeared to be concussed and the other who was concerned he may lose consciousness, that one of them was wearing a Kippah (Jewish skullcap – ed). Their wallets and passports had not been touched – they were not attacked for money. Of the three people walking past them one of them initially spat at the Kippah wearing Israeli. He then turned around and started attacking. Two more people appeared and the guys were left lying on the sidewalk when they ran off.
I haven’t seen anything about this in the media. I suppose they are too busy reporting the follow-up to Quokka-gate, although it’s also possible they have not yet heard of the incident.
Yeah, I know. There’s no proof the attack was racially motivated, nor that people did not stop to help because the victims were visibly Jewish or Israeli. But the fact is the attack did occur and no-one stopped to help the victims. That is disturbing in itself.
Update: By the way, the Torah commands Jews to help out in such a situation, when it states (Leviticus 19:16):
“You shall not stand over the blood of your neighbor”
I am so proud to be part of a religion like this, rather than part of the moral relativism crowd.
