In a potential terrorist attack in Beijing, a 50-year-old Israeli man associated with the Israeli Embassy was stabbed outside a supermarket on Friday.
The Beijing police swiftly made an arrest, detaining a 53-year-old foreign national believed to be involved in small goods trading in the city.
The victim, identified as a family member of an Israeli diplomat, was immediately taken to a nearby hospital.
“The employee was transferred to hospital and he is in a stable condition,” confirmed a statement from the Israeli government.
Eyewitnesses in the vicinity recounted a chaotic scene with the injured man’s shouts echoing as police and ambulance services rushed to his aid.
The exact location of the incident, corroborated by a video, was not within the embassy premises but on a public street in the Chinese capital. After the initial chaos, police set up a cordon and swiftly managed the scene.
The Israeli foreign ministry released a statement saying, “An Israeli employee of the Israeli embassy in Beijing was attacked today.”
It further added that they are investigating the motive behind the assault, stating, “The motive for the assault is being looked into.”
Tensions have been escalating globally due to Israel’s recent bombing campaign in Gaza, following a significant incursion by the militant group Hamas into southern Israel.
The potential terror attack comes after the Islamic Resistance Movement, known as Hamas, issued an alarming statement on Tuesday that marked Friday, October 13 as “Al-Aqsa Flood Friday.”
In the statement, the group directed not only Palestinians but also the wider global Muslim community to “mobilize” and “participate actively.”
Explicitly addressing Palestinians within Israel, Hamas stated: “This day is your day to mobilize, assemble, and stand united in guarding the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque.”
Highlighting their intention for an international response, they proclaimed, “We declare next Friday, ‘The Friday of the Al-Aqsa Flood,’ as a day of general mobilization in our Arab and Islamic world and among the free people of the world. It is a day to rally support, offer aid, and participate actively.”
“It is a day to expose the crimes of the occupation, isolate it, and foil all its aggressive schemes. It is a day to demonstrate our love for Palestine, Jerusalem, and Al-Aqsa,” Hamas continued. “It is a day for sacrifice, heroism, and dedication, and to earn the honor of defending the first Qibla of Muslims, the third holiest mosque, and the ascension of the trusted Messenger.”
While the motivation behind the Beijing attack remains uncertain and authorities have not yet linked it to the Israel-Hamas conflict, the timing raises questions.
Expressing their commitment to foreign diplomat safety, a spokesperson from China’s foreign ministry said, “China expresses condolences to the injured party from the Israeli embassy in China.”
They emphasized, “China has always placed high importance on the safety of foreign missions and their workers in the country, and will continue to provide security guarantees.”
In light of the incident, U.S. Ambassador to China, Nicholas Burns, expressed solidarity with the Israeli community in China.
“We are shocked by today’s attack on an Israeli diplomat in Beijing,” he stated on the social media platform X, previously known as Twitter. Burns also mentioned that he had a discussion with Israel’s ambassador to China, Irit Ben-Abba, about the incident.
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