israelinsider: security: Son of terrorist victim killed in early morning ambush

Son of terrorist victim killed in early morning ambush
By Ellis Shuman May 1, 2001

Archive picture of Assaf Hershkowitz with his father, Arye Hershkowitz.


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Assaf Hershkowitz, a resident of Ofra, was killed Tuesday morning when his van overturned on the Beit El highway after being fired on by Palestinian gunmen. Hershkowitz, 31, married and father of two children, was the son of Arye Hershkowitz, who was killed in a similar terrorist ambush in the Ramallah area in January.

The ambush occurred shortly after 6 a.m. when Assaf Hershkowitz was driving to work on the bypass road between Ofra and Beit El. Medics who arrived at the scene told Israel Radio they found some 25 spent shell casings in the vicinity.

The ynet website reported that two Palestinian gunmen carried out the attack and then fled into Palestinian-held territory. The IDF immediately imposed a full closure on the nearby village of Beitin and began a manhunt for the perpetrators.

Arye Hershkowitz, 55, was killed when hit by a hail of bullets fired from a passing vehicle as he drove on the highway between the Rama junction and Adam on January 29th.

Sara Afik, Assaf Hershkowitz's aunt, told ynet that after his father's death, Assaf was given a flak jacket to protect him. Tuesday morning, despite the jacket, the assailants' bullets managed to strike Hershkowitz in the neck.

Assaf Hershkowitz's funeral was held Tuesday afternoon at the Segula cemetery in Petach Tikva. Hershkowitz was laid to rest next to his father.

Earlier shooting attack wounds Israeli
Another Israeli motorist was lightly injured in an earlier drive-by shooting attack Tuesday. A resident of Beit Shean was wounded in both legs when Palestinians opened fire on his car near the settlement of Itamar, according to an Israel Radio report.

According to media sources, IDF forces chased and managed to apprehend the assailants in the vicinity of the Askar refugee camp near Nablus.