Killing Asher Palmer Twice

David Wilder
September 25, 2011


The Palmer family is very special. I don’t know many people whose ‘mesirut nefesh’ for Eretz Yisrael is greater than theirs. They came to Israel about 30 years ago. They moved because they wanted their children to grow up in a Jewish environment. Moshe, the father of the family, has a special expertise and despite numerous, numerous attempts, was never able to find suitable employment in Israel. As a result, he works in the United States, coming home to his family in Kiryat Arba several times a year, celebrating with them various Jewish holidays and events.

Molly Palmer brought up her children with much love and care for Eretz Yisrael. She has worked for many years teaching English in Kiryat Arba and the Southern Hebron Hills region. I also seem to recall that she’s an excellent cook and baker. In the past she sold various pastries, of which I remember enjoying immensely.

On Friday afternoon Molly Palmer and her family were stunned, as were all that know them, by the terrible news that her 25 year old son Asher, together with his year old son, were killed in a ‘traffic accident.’ Police reported that as a result of speeding, he had lost control of his car not too far outside of Kiryat Arba. The car flipped over twice in the air, being totally destroyed as it crash landed.

Immediately, even before the victims were identified, the army released a statement that soldiers stationed in the area hadn ‘t witnessed any rock-throwing, or any Arabs fleeing from the area of the ‘accident.’

This past Friday was one of those times when no one had any idea what the day would bring. As a rule, when Arabs want to protest, Friday, after their prayers, is the time. Following Obama’s rejection of a UN-declared palestinian state, together with Abu-Mazen’s speech scheduled for Friday, tension was high. Bolstered security forces were stationed throughout Judea and Samaria, prepared for the worst.

Those fears were a double-edged sword. Media account over the past few weeks centered not so much on Arab violence, rather on Israel responses, and most particularly, those of ‘radical settlers.’ Normal, everyday Jews are so being labeled. For example, New York Times Bureau chief Ethan Bronner, in an article posted Friday, writes, “…Bat Ayin, a fenceless settlement near Bethlehem known for its radicalism.’ Known by whom? Bat Ayin, a community of Hassidic Jews in the Gush Eztion area, is far from ‘radical’ as I would define the word.

The police/security establishment has one fear, and one fear alone. It is not dead Jews. It is dead Arabs. They are petrified of the thought that Arabs will attack Jews, on the roads or in communities, and that the Jews will respond, causing Arab casualties, resulting in Arab propaganda campaigns, similar to those following the Marmara debacle, leading to massive foreign pressure on Israel.

The area of the accident is quite prone to rock attacks. Cars are stoned daily, many times in areas known from their vulnerability. Unfortunately, very little, if anything, is done to prevent these attacks. Very high ranking officers, during instructions to lower-level commanders, have been quoted as saying that ‘rock attacks are sufferable.’ In other words, the IDF really doesn’t have any responsibility to stop such attacks or apprehend the terrorists hurling the rocks. The ‘settlers’ can and will just have to live with this reality.

However, lately, our enemies have begun using a new method in their continued attempts to kill Jews. Instead of standing on the side of the road and throwing a rock, they are heaving them from moving cars, coming at you from the opposite direction. They toss a rock out their window, in front of your car, just prior to passing you.

The impact is tremendous. The rock is flying at the speed at which the car was driving. When it impacts with the car moving in the other direction, the force is phenomenal.

I’ve been told of numerous such incidents in recent weeks, in the exact area where the ‘accident’ killing Asher and Yonatan Palmer occurred.

On Friday afternoon, this is exactly what happened. That’s why no one was seen fleeing on foot, because the rock was thrown from a moving vehicle. It hit the windshield, breaking it, hitting Asher in the face, causing him to lose control of the car. The rock was found in the wrecked car. A hole, the type of which caused by a thrown rock, was also identified in the windshield. Yet the police and army climbed up a very high tree, claiming that the ‘accident’ was Asher’s fault. They claimed that the rock entered the car as it flipped over in a rock-bed on the side of the road. All this in an effort to cover up the murder of two Jews by Arabs. According to my sources, the police have already concluded that the ‘accident’ was not an accident, that it was cold-blooded murder; the killing two Jews.

There are other details which have not yet been released, and I’m hesitant to fully publicize them for the moment. Some of Asher’s possessions seemed to be missing and have not yet been found at the scene of the crash. There are also signs of possible additional violence at the site. These details prove, without any doubt, that the accident was Arab terror.

The police, not yet weary of the additional pain they’ve already caused the Palmer family are continuing to torture them; they went to court to obtain an order allowing them to perform an autopsy on the two bodies. Jewish law, excluding unique circumstances, forbids autopsies. However all evidence, including examinations of the bodies, the car, and the scene of the attack are proof enough. Why continue to cause unnecessary suffering?!

The seriousness of this cannot be downplayed. Israeli security forces intentionally attempted to cover-up murder. The implications are mind-boggling. In order to prevent possible ‘disturbances’ between Jews and Arabs as the result of this terror, they killed Asher Palmer twice. First, Arabs killed him. But then Israeli police killed him again, blaming him for his own death, due to reckless driving, and being responsible for killing his one year old son, leaving his widow and family to live with this horrible reality for the rest of their lives.

Of course, these facts would preclude having to search for ‘terrorists.’ And would also prevent Asher’s widow from receiving financial aid provided by the State to terror victims’ families.

Such lies, on the part of Israeli security forces, must be uncovered and dealt with to the fullest. It is unthinkable that Israeli security forces would lie about a terror attack in order to prevent ‘Jewish responses.’ Additionally, a Jew cannot be blamed for crimes that he did not commit. Blame where blame lies: with murderous Arab terrorists.

Asher and Yonatan Palmer will be buried tonight, Sunday, Sept. 25, in Hebron. The funeral procession will leave the Palmer home in Kiryat Arba at 18:00. May their memories be blessed and may HaShem Yinkom Damam.