In an interview from his hospital bed, an Israeli Jew stabbed by a Jewish man who believed he was an Arab condemned a recent string of suspected vigilante attacks in Israel.

“We are all human beings, we are all equal,” said Uri Rezken, who was stabbed in the back in a Haifa suburb Tuesday while stocking shelves at the supermarket where he works. “It does not matter if an Arab stabbed me or a Jew stabbed me, a religious, orthodox or secular person. I have no words to describe this hate crime.”

The Guardian reports:

Israeli police said the stabbing was intended to “avenge a recent wave of attacks on Jews”.

Rezken said he was working with an Arab colleague when he was stabbed. “I felt four stabs and I heard someone say: ‘You deserve it, you deserve it. You are bastard Arabs.’ ”

[Rezken] tried to protect himself with a shopping trolley. “I screamed at him: ‘I am a Jew, I am a Jew’ – he didn’t stop … he tried to stab me again so I fought him again with my trolley.”

The 36-year-old attacker, who is known to police, was shot by a security guard as he tried to flee. He was granted anonymity by a magistrates’ court in Haifa since he may now become a target of a vigilante attack. The court also agreed to his lawyer’s request for a psychological examination to see if he was fit to stand trial.

Read more here.

— Posted by Alexander Reed Kelly.

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