Image by YouTube

JERUSALEM — The parents of an Eritrean man shot and killed at the scene of a terror attack in Beersheba after being mistaken for the terrorist are suing the state.

The parents of  Haftom Zarhum are asking for $3 million shekel, about $780,000, in damages for the October 2015 killing. The lawsuit includes the Israel Police, the bus station’s security company and the four indicted assailants.

The attacker at the Beersheba bus station, a Bedouin-Israeli, stabbed a soldier and grabbed his M-16 rifle, then opened fire.

Forwarding the News

Thoughtful, balanced reporting from the Forward and around the web, bringing you updated news and analysis each day.

Terms(Required)

I agree to the Forward's Terms of Service and Privacy Policy

Email(Required)

Security guards shot Zarhum, who was then beaten by a mob as he was prone on the ground. Video images of the attack show Zarhum incapacitated and lying in a pool of his own blood being kicked by bystanders who thought he was an assailant.

An autopsy found that Zarhum had eight gunshot wounds, two of which were fatal.

The family is also calling on the National Insurance Agency to recognize Zarhum as a victim of terror, which would offer additional compensation to the family. The agency has said it would not recognize Zarhum because he had entered the country illegally.

An Israeli soldier, a prison guard officer and two civilians were arrested and [indicted](http://www.jta.org/2016/01/12/news-opinion/israel-middle-east/israeli-soldier-3-others-indicted-in-beating-of-eritrean-mistaken-for-terrorist emds “”) for the murder of Zarhum. His killing led to some national soul searching.

The Forward is free to read, but it isn’t free to produce

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward.

Now more than ever, American Jews need independent news they can trust, with reporting driven by truth, not ideology. We serve you, not any ideological agenda.

At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and polarized discourse.

Readers like you make it all possible. We’ve started our Passover Fundraising Drive, and we need 1,800 readers like you to step up to support the Forward by April 21. Members of the Forward board are even matching the first 1,000 gifts, up to $70,000.

This is a great time to support independent Jewish journalism, because every dollar goes twice as far.

—  Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO

2X match on all Passover gifts!

$90 → $180 $180 → $360

$360 → $720

Other amount