BICOM

The State Prosecutor’s Office in Jerusalem announced yesterday that the man who killed a British student on Good Friday is fit to stand trial.

The announcement followed a psychiatric assessment of Jamil Tamimi, 57, who stabbed and killed Hannah Bladon, 20, on the light rail in Jerusalem. A 30-year-old pregnant woman and a 50-year-old man were also injured in the attack.

Tamimi was disarmed by an off-duty Israeli police officer on the light rail. Israeli Ambulance service paramedics attempted to give Hannah Bladon CPR at the scene and rushed her to hospital but were unable to save her life.

Bladon, from Burton-upon-Trent in Staffordshire was studying religion, theology and archaeology at Birmingham University. She had been in Israel since January studying bible, Hebrew and archeology on an exchange programme at the Hebrew University’s Rothberg International School.

Tamimi has a history of mental illness and was undergoing treatment at the Kfar Shaul Mental Health Centre. He was recently convicted of a number of sexual offences he committed against his daughter. Jerusalem police chief Yoram Halevy told the AFP news agency that Tamimi was “mentally disturbed” and Israel’s Channel 2 news reported that Tamimi told investigators he carried out the attack because he wanted to die and hoped the soldier who was standing next to Hannah Bladon on the tram would shoot him.

The Foreign Office issued a statement on behalf of the Bladon family on Saturday. Her parents described her as  “the most caring, sensitive and compassionate daughter you could ever wish for,” adding “Hannah was a talented musician, part of a serving team at her local church and a member of her local archaeological group. She was an enthusiastic rugby player and a keen Derby County supporter. She was driven and passionate and her death leaves so much promise unfulfilled.”

In total 48 people have been killed by stabbings, shootings and car rammings in a wave of Palestinian terror attacks since October 2015.