Sergeant Gal Weingarten´s quick response to attack by teen terrorists awards him IDF citation

An Israeli soldier who was attacked by two terrorists and in response killed one of them and wounded the other was awarded a special citation. Sergeant Gal Weingarten will receive the citation at the end of April.

Some two weeks ago, Weingarten was stabbed in the neck in the village of Yatta near Hebron as his company was preparing to arrest a Palestinian terrorist who was released as part of the Shalit deal and has been smuggling terrorist funds since.

An IDF inquest indicates that two teens aged 14 and 17 attacked Weingarten, an army medic, near the building where the terrorist was staying. One of them grabbed the soldier and the other stabbed him in the neck.

The two then fled the scene, but Weingarten quickly regained his composure and fired four shots at them. The stabber was seriously wounded and the other assailant was killed.

Weingarten himself sustained moderate wounds. Upon hearing the shooting, the company´s deputy commander rushed to his aid and pressed on his wound to stop the bleeding. Weingarten was taken to the Hadassah Ein Kerem hospital where he underwent surgery.

He later received praise from IDF Chief of Staff Benny Gantz for his bravery. Gantz also told him to expect a surprise on Independence Day.

"Gal demonstrated determination and the highest level of professionalism," a senior IDF officer said. (Copyright 2012 © Yedioth Internet 04/01/12)