On Wednesday afternoon a terror attack was prevented from being carried out by an aware ambucycle driver and volunteer EMT from United Hatzalah and the IDF. The incident occurred near the Gush Etzion junction, a location that has seen numerous attacks in the recent months.
Shlomi Anavi, who recently began volunteering as an ambucycle EMT with United Hatzalah and who lives in Elazar was driving from his home town towards the intersection when he noticed an Arab woman walking on the side of the highway, against the flow of traffic and in a very suspicious manner.
After watching her while driving, and eventually passing her, he sped up and notified the IDF personnel stationed at the intersection explaining to them exactly what she looked like and from which direction she was coming. The IDF took it from there and when the woman approached their position ordered her to stop and leveled their weapons at her feet long before she was able to reach their position. The woman held out a knife and dropped the weapon before being taken into custody by the IDF.
In a letter of thanks that Anavi wrote to his new organization he said, “Today, thank God we prevented a terror attack at the Gush Etzion junction thanks to the ambucycle you gave me. When one is driving on a motorcycle or ambucycle, one must be much more aware of their surroundings and the highway on which they are driving in order to pinpoint the car that might hit you or otherwise cause you to spin out.
During my routine drive today I noticed a suspicious woman walking along the highway against the flow of traffic. She was Arab and she was walking from the Southern Efrat junction to the Gush Etzion junction in a suspicious manner. When I arrived at the Gush Etzion junction I alerted the soldiers to my suspicions about the woman and explained in detail what she looked like and which direction she was coming from.
About 20 minutes later the woman approached the intersection and the soldiers were prepared for her arrival ordering her to stop and prepare to be checked for weapons. She had no other option but to drop the knife that she was carrying and surrender to the soldiers.
I am just a small cog in the wheel of protection for those around me and an even smaller cog in the wheel of the organization that is United Hatzalah, but I wanted to thank you for the lives that you helped me save today.”
Anavi has been the head of security for Elazar for the past 13 years and is a member of the Gush Etzion Search and Rescue Unit.
His ambucycle was donated just a few weeks ago by a family from Elazar who wished it to serve their community and the surrounding area.