Israeli overpowers gunmen during attack on bus stop in Jerusalem, but is then shot dead by Israeli soldier | Abroad

There is anger in Israel after the death of Castleman, a former police officer. While on his way to work, he sees two gunmen open fire at a bus stop in Jerusalem. Surveillance footage from the scene shows two men getting out of a Ford Focus and starting to shoot at those waiting. “Yuval saw the attack, took out his weapon and attacked the terrorists. He killed them both,” said Guy Itzkovich, a friend of Castleman.

There are also two Israeli soldiers on site at the time. One of them, a reservist according to the Israeli army, considers Castleman a terrorist and opens fire on him. “When Yuval realized he could be mistaken for a terrorist, he opened his jacket to show he had nothing on him. He got down on his knees. They could see that he had nothing left in his hands,” Itzkovich said. “He threw his wallet with his ID in front of him to prove that he was indeed an Israeli. They just shot him.”

Castleman died of his injuries at Shaare Zedek Hospital on Thursday.

The attack happened shortly after Israel and Hamas announced that the pause in fighting in Gaza would be extended by one day. According to Shin Bet, Israel’s domestic intelligence service, the terrorists were two Palestinian brothers from East Jerusalem, one aged 30 and one aged 38. Shin Bet says the two were members of the terrorist group Hamas and that both had previously been imprisoned for terrorist activities. Hamas has now confirmed that it was behind the attack.

Three more people did not survive the attack. A 24-year-old woman died at the scene. A woman in her 60s and a 73-year-old rabbi later died in hospital from their injuries.

According to Itzkovich, who worked with Castleman on the police force, the soldier who shot his friend violated several protocols. “There are certain things you are not allowed to do, even if Yuval was a terrorist. According to protocols, they should have arrested him. He should never have been shot.”

Initially, the Israeli military IDF stated that it would not investigate Castleman’s death further, but given the dissatisfaction in the country, the IDF now announced that it would join the investigation. “IDF has clear instructions when someone is allowed to shoot. When someone raises their hands, shooting is not allowed. We have to wait until the investigation is over before anyone can be charged.”

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday called for “a thorough investigation.” He calls Castleman “a hero of Israel.” Netanyahu previously defended the right of Israeli citizens to bear arms. He suggested that there are casualties. “That’s life,” he said. According to Minister of National Security Itamar Ben-Gvir, it is also important that weapons are distributed among the Israeli population.

The number of requests to carry firearms increased after the Hamas attack on October 7, according to the Ministry of National Security. As of October 30, the ministry had received 180,500 new applications.