Police believe Arab passenger stabbed Israeli taxi driver; man in custody

A 30-year-old taxi driver sustained serious injuries overnight after he was stabbed by a passenger.

He was rushed to the Meir Hospital in Kfar Saba where doctores were able to stabilize his condition.

According to available detail, the cabbie picked up an Arab passenger in Tel Aviv on a fare to Kfar Saba.

The police suspect that the passenger attacked the driver by surprise, stabbing him several times in the upper torso.

The assailant – who paid for the fare in advance – fled the scene.

Security forces canvassed area and arrested an Arab man in connection to the case, which is believed to have been nationalistically motivated.

Police sources told Ynet that the suspect is an illegal Palestinian alien. He was handed over to the Shin Bet for further interrogation.

Udi Levy, who runs the cab company, told Ynet the he and the driver´s colleagues, were very concerned. "We´re shocked by this. We all love him and hope he pulls through." The night dispatcher at the taxi station, Doron Rosenberg, said that the driver contacted him at around 1:30 am. "I told him over the radio that I do not understand what he´s saying. He replied: ´I´ve been stabbed´ I searched for his location on the GPS and immediately called the police," the dispatcher recalled.

Rosenberg claims the police dispatcher seemed indifferent and even suggested that he contact another police district. "So I phoned Magen David Adom (emergency service), and they sent an ambulance within two minutes. Luckily, there was a hospital nearby," he said. (Copyright 2012 © Yedioth Internet 04/24/12)