WARNING: Graphic Content
Harrowing video caught a staffer at the Israeli Embassy in Beijing being stabbed on a sidewalk Friday — the day that Hamas’ former leader called on all members of Islam to wage a “day of Jihad.”
The 50-year-old staffer is seen being stabbed repeatedly by the male assailant after a brief struggle as he lies on a sidewalk, according to a video posted on social media and geolocated by Agence France-Presse to an area about a mile from the embassy.
“An Israeli employee of the Israeli embassy in Beijing was attacked today,” the Israeli Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
“The employee is being treated at a hospital and is in stable condition. The motive for the assault is being looked into.”
Beijing police said they have arrested a 53-year-old foreign man in the brutal attack on the victim, whom they described as a family member of an Israeli diplomat.
Shocking video caught the moment a staffer at the Israeli Embassy in Beijing was stabbed on a sidewalk X / @BigBreakingWire
Shocking video caught the moment a staffer at the Israeli Embassy in Beijing was stabbed on a sidewalk. X / @BigBreakingWire
The Israeli Embassy staffer has not been identified. X / @BigBreakingWire
The victim was stabbed repeatedly after a brief struggle with the assailant. X / @BigBreakingWire
The victim eventually managed to get away and the attacker limped off. X / @BigBreakingWireThe 30-second clip shows the man with a knife grappling with the victim on the ground and stabbing him several times, leaving a trail of blood stains on the sidewalk, as passersby look on.
The video then shows the victim and assailant, who appears to be limping, walking away from the scene.
People working in the area said they heard the victim shouting as police cars and an ambulance arrived.
The stabbing occurred as Muslims across the globe took to the streets in large protests over Israel’s intense bombing campaign in Gaza, following the unprecedented and deadly attack by Hamas almost a week ago.
“We are shocked by today’s attack on an Israeli diplomat in Beijing,” US Ambassador to China Nicholas Burns wrote on X.
He said he had spoken to his Israeli counterpart, Ambassador Irit Ben-Abba, and offered Washington’s “full support to the Israeli embassy and Israeli community in China.”
The attack comes after Israel had criticized China for its statement that followed Hamas’ attack on the Jewish state on Saturday.
Just before making the announcement, the Foreign Ministry issued a statement saying that Ambassador Rafi Harpaz had spoken with the Chinese envoy for the Middle East, Zhai Jun, to express his country’s “deep disappointment” over China’s comments.
There was “no clear and unequivocal condemnation of the terrible massacre committed by the terrorist organization Hamas against innocent civilians and the abduction of dozens of them to Gaza,” the statement said.
The attack left a trail of blood on the street. X / @BigBreakingWire“The Chinese announcements do not contain any element of Israel’s right to defend itself and its citizens, a fundamental right of any sovereign country that was attacked in an unprecedented manner and with cruelty that has no place in human society,” it added.
Asked about the Israeli statement, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said that China opposes acts harming civilians and violating international law.
“China will continue to work unremittingly for de-escalation of the situation and the resumption of peace talks,” he said.
China said in an earlier statement that Beijing was “deeply concerned over the escalation of tensions and violence between Israel and Palestine and saddened by the civilian casualties caused by the conflict.”
Neither the victim nor the assailant were identified. X / @BigBreakingWire“China condemns actions that harm innocent civilians, and calls for an early cease-fire and the end of violence, and resuming talks for peace on the basis of the two-state solution to boost the two peoples’ confidence in achieving peace,” the statement said.
US Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, meeting with Chinese leaders in Beijing earlier this week, voiced dissatisfaction over the initial Chinese statement about the Hamas attack.
He later said he was gratified when a Foreign Ministry spokesperson later added that China is “deeply saddened by the civilian casualties” and “opposes and condemns acts that harm civilians.”
In Beijing on Friday, several plainclothes cops were stationed outside the Israeli Embassy in addition to the normal contingent of uniformed officers.
The victim was transported to a hospital in stable condition. X / @BigBreakingWireAbout a mile away at the Palestinian Embassy, plainclothes officers were also on hand and one was tightening wires on a fence.
Hamas’ former leader, Khaled Meshaal, has called on all members of Islam to wage a “day of Jihad” and stage protests.
He called on Muslims to stage global demonstrations in support of Palestinians, urging the Islamic world to “head to the squares and streets of the Arab and Islamic world on Friday.”
Meshaal said, “All scholars who teach jihad … to all who teach and learn, this is a moment for the application [of jihad].”
With Post wires
