Eight Israelis were killed and thirty five were wounded (warning: link contains disturbing images) after an Arab terrorist entered a yeshiva in Jerusalem last night and opened fire with an automatic rifle. The gunman, who was believed to be an Israeli-Arab living in the east of the city, entered the Merkaz HaRav Yeshiva at around 8:30pm last night where around eighty people were gathered. Yitzchak Dadon, a part-time yeshiva student and IDF officer, was in the study hall at the time of the attack. Another IDF paratrooper officer, David Shapira, arrived on the scene soon after hearing the gunshots, and both men were able to take the killer out.

Quote: "The attacker entered the yeshiva and opened fire on students before he was gunned down himself by a part-time yeshiva student, aided by an off-duty army officer from the neighborhood. The attack began in the seminary's library with the terrorist spraying bullets in every direction before anyone could react. The part-time yeshiva student who first shot the terrorist, 40-year-old Yitzchak Dadon, said he was in the Yeshiva's study hall when he heard the shots. "Everyone left through a side door," he said, "and I left through a window, and lied down on a roof overlooking the library... When he came out, I shot him in the head twice. I saw him start to stagger, and then David Shapira [a yeshiva graduate and paratroopers officer] arrived on the scene, shot him with his M-16 rifle, and then we emptied our magazines into him."

While the terrorist attack drew almost universal condemnation from world leaders, thousands of Palestinians living in Gaza celebrated the slayings of the Israelis by holding rallies in the streets, handing out sweets to children and by attending prayer and thanksgiving services. The Hamas terrorist organization issued a statement saying that they added their blessing to the operation, and that it would not be their last. The United Nations was preparing to issue a statement condemning the atrocity, but has been prevented from doing so by Libya and several other states, who are seeking a parallel condemnation of Israel's activities in Gaza last week. Libya's attempt to morally equate the pre-meditated murder of innocent civilians in Jerusalem with those killed during operations aimed at halting terrorist activity in the Gaza Strip has drawn harsh criticism from the United States and Israel. 

Quote: "Dan Gillerman, the ambassador of Israel, which is not on the council, had harsh words for Libya. He referred to it as the country responsible for the 1988 bombing of Pam Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland, which killed some 270 people. "Unfortunately, this is what happens when the Security Council is infiltrated by terrorists," he said, referring to the council's failure to adopt the US statement. Libya's deputy ambassador, Ibrahim al-Dabbashi, dismissed Gillerman's attack. "We don't need a certificate of good conduct from the Israeli terrorist regime," he said.

Unfortunate as they may be, yesterday's events may give us a small taster of what might come to pass during the time of Jacob's trouble. The Bible states that during the tribulation period, the Gentiles will be in siege both against Judea and Jerusalem (Zechariah 12:2). Following the Antichrist's rise to power, the Lord Jesus Christ warned that the Jewish people would face the greatest period of trouble they have ever experienced, even since the time Israel first became a nation (Daniel 12:1, Matthew 24:21). And as we can see from the Palestinian reaction to the murder of these Israelis, that time may not be far off. As the Arab gunman opened fire on the yeshiva students, he cried out "Allahu Ackbar", or "God is greatest". The Lord Jesus Christ stated that the time would come whenever those who killed God's people would believe they were doing Him a service (John 16:2). And whenever God's two witnesses are slain in the streets of Jerusalem, the inhabitants of the earth will express joy at their deaths in giving gifts one to another, for these two prophets tormented them with their message of righteousness, temperance and judgement to come (Revelation 11:10). Whenever the Roman governor Felix heard Paul speak of these things, the Bible mentions that Felix trembled (Acts 24:25). But we never read of him ever coming to know Jesus Christ as His Lord and Saviour. He had plenty of opportunities, but squandered them. How many opportunities have you had to repent and receive Christ for salvation? How many more will you get before you die? The Bible warns us to boast not to ourselves of what we shall do tomorrow, for we know not what a day brings forth (Proverbs 27:1). Trust in Jesus Christ for salvation today.

Source Arutz 7, YNet News, YNet News