Woodbridge, CT - The Jewish Federation of Greater New Haven and its Jewish Community Relations Council (JCRC) are horrified by the brutal acts of terror that took place in Israel today and yesterday. In Kiryat Arba in the West Bank, 13 year-old Hallel Yaffa Ariel was stabbed to death while asleep in her bed by a Palestinian terrorist who broke into a home. In Netanya, two civilians were stabbed and wounded in the central market by a Palestinian assailant​ from Tulkarem. Today, Rabbi Michael “Miki” Mark, 48, a father of 10,  was killed by a Palestinian gunman while driving in the South Hebron Hills.

We condemn these acts of terror and the incitement that propelled them. We reject any twisted ideology that supports the slaughterer of innocent people. The atrocities that took place in the past two days are the latest in a string of attacks that have taken place across the globe over the past month, including: four Israelis shot in Tel Aviv’s Sarona market; 49 people gunned down in an Orlando nightclub; 41 people killed by explosions that rocked Istanbul’s airport, while hundreds more were injured; nearly 100 men were killed in Yemen by Islamic State suicide bombers in two separate incidents, and 52 fishermen were murdered by terrorists in Cameroon. 

May the memories of Hallel Yaffa Ariel and of Rabbi Michael “Miki” Mark be a blessing. We offer our condolences to their families and pray for a swift recovery of the injured. As we continue to search for peace for our brothers and sisters in Israel – and for a resolution to bloody conflicts around the world – we call for an immediate end to incitement.