Counselors' heroism foils terror attack in Gush Etzion seminary high school
By Israel Insider staff January 25, 2008
In Gush Etzion, southeast of Jerusalem, two Palestinian gunmen wearing IDF uniforms burst into the Makor Haim yeshiva high school. Wielding guns and knives, they lightly injured two Israeli counselors before being shot dead.
The terrorists infiltrated Makor Haim, a kibbutz, sneaking into the main building of its high school seminary, run by world-renowned Talmudist, Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz. The terrorists entered a library room where seven of the boarding school's counselors were meeting. Dressed as security guards, and armed with a knife and what appeared to be a gun -- it later turned out to be a toy -- ordered the seven to line up on one side of the room. A counselor, realizing they were terrorists, drew his personal firearm and opened fire. Another grabbed the fake gun from the other terrorist, wrestled him to the floor, while the first counselor shot him. The terrorists managed to stab two of the counselors before falling dead.
At the same time, the Beit Medrash (study hall) -- adjacent to the library -- was packed with students taking part in the weekly Thursday night "mishmar" all-night Torah study session, Israel National News reported.
An army official praised the quick response of the students and their counselors. "This could have ended much worse," a source in the Central Command said.
elb
p.s. sorry, couldn't find a "tongue in cheek" emoticon to use in the subject...
To me there are a couple of lessons in this article. While we all know news reports are often incomplete and sometimes contain huge errors, for the sake of discussion, let’s stick to the “facts� listed.
First, I think we all accept that Israel is a nation deeply embroiled in the war on terror…on the home front they live with it on practically a daily basis (unlike the US). That’s not to say we are completely immune, or that there’s no risk. But the facts are we suffer much less on the home front from terrorist then Israel does, and our security measures reflect that. Keeping that in mind, now back to the story.
“The terrorists infiltrated Makor Haim, a kibbutz…� I don’t know how many of you have been to Israel, but the security around a kibbutz is typically better then what we in Texas have around our schools…the terrorist made it past the perimeter security…they would certainly have no trouble in Texas.
“Dressed as security guards…� We’ve had several threads that discussed false traffic stops by cop wanabe’s . What do you think the initial reaction in our schools would be to commands issued from someone in what appeared to be an LEO uniform? How hard would it be for terrorist to get their hands on passable uniforms here? How would your child respond? Food for thought…
“A counselor, realizing they were terrorists, drew his personal firearm and opened fire.� This is where we completely derail the train here in Texas…nobody in that room would have been armed if it happened here (at least not with a firearm). There’s also the question of would anyone in our school administration spot them as terrorist in a timely fashion? Do our school staffs attend training programs? Do they have drills with the students so they all know what to do? Why not, we have fire and tornado drills don’t we?
“ordered the seven to line up on one side of the room.� What do you think the response would likely be in our schools? Isn’t there a post on the forum about 5 women in Ill…
“Another grabbed the fake gun from the other terrorist, wrestled him to the floor, while the first counselor shot him� Here we see them going after the guy with the gun…of course they didn’t know it was fake at the time…a pretty good demonstration of courage, and definitely the right mindset. The counselor with the firearm shot this terrorist…a wise decision since he thought the terrorist had a functioning firearm. If it had of been a functioning firearm, this could have turned out considerably different, and much more negative.
“The terrorists managed to stab two of the counselors before falling dead.� Just further proof that someone armed with a knife can do damage before a firearm can bring them down.
Transplant those terrorist to someplace in Texas, targeting one of our schools, give them functioning firearms, and ask yourself how it would turn out…pretty scary.
Now give them explosives if you really want a nightmare…
Is that scenario possible in Texas…certainly. If it can happen in Israel with their level of awareness, it doesn’t take a leap in faith to accept that it is possible here.
Is it probable? That’s a much tougher question. No doubt the border is rather porous and terrorist getting across is certainly a risk…but some would say it hasn’t happened yet, so why worry?
There’s also the issue of home-grown terrorist. They don’t have to cross a border, they’re already here. That means one level of security is potentially already gone.
I personally think we should take this serious and work out layered security for our schools, and that layer approach should go all the way to our teachers since they ultimately could be the last best chance to put an end to a terrorist attack.
Which sounds better to you, a terrorist coming through the classroom door to find the teacher trying to protect the students by using their body as a shield, or upon entering the room he/she finds out the teacher is armed and waiting in ambush. Yes, I would rather he/she find an empty classroom since the students got out, but that may not always be the case, and with the current trend of “Lock Down� they’ll probably still be in the room when the terrorist enters.
I’m glad we have folks like Venus in our school systems. Many times she has demonstrated the proper mindset in her posts. I just wish she was allowed to carry her firearm and she had access to specialized training specific to the school environment. After all, the teachers and school staff will probably be the “First Responders� in reality…
VP, not sure what you are asking, or who you are asking. I certainly didn't see a problem in the original article, other than a couple terrorists attacked a school. And of course, they were neatly dealt with. I titled it the way I did to ensure some interest ... but I sure don't see a problem with the good guys having guns in school. Quite the opposite.
I believe if we unfortunately had many more school shootings and attacks of that nature on similar soft targets here in the states...The gun-control community would be shown the door...
I'll be glad to lock it after they are gone...
Israel learns hard lessons everyday...I think we are extremely lucky to not be in that position...
"Perseverance and Preparedness triumph over Procrastination and Paranoia every time.” -- Steve
NRA - Life Member
"Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?"
Μολών λαβέ!
... but I sure don't see a problem with the good guys having guns in school. Quite the opposite.
