(Yechiel Spira – YWN) Jerusalem Police Chief Ilan Franco on Wednesday morning appeared before the Knesset Interior Committee to report on the performance of his troops regarding the Merkaz HaRav Yeshiva attack and the protest at Jabel Mukaber, which resulted in rioting inside the Arab neighborhood of the capital.

Regarding the first police officers arriving on the scene of the terror attack, one remained outside the yeshiva rather than taking action towards stopping the Merkaz terrorist. The rookie officer did take the weapon kept in the police vehicle, and was also armed with his handgun and entered the school yard but then turned around and waited outside.

Franco stated yes, he should have entered the building and made an effort to neutralize the terrorist. That said, the commander added the officer had recently graduated from the Israel Police academy, and he did not receive and specialized training in weapons and tactics or counter-terror measures, stating it is not certain just how effective the officer’s actions could have been.

Franco did state without and doubt the policeman should have engaged the terrorist, as any policeman should in similar occurrences in the future. Police officers he explained are compelled to take action if they are aware of such a situation, where people are being killed.

The other officer, a female, decided to move down the street and stop vehicular traffic and buses to avoid any injuries from stray gunfire that might emanate from the yeshiva campus. Her actions were deemed appropriate.

The terrorist was eventually eliminated by IDF Captain David Shapira, who lives nearby and came running with his automatic weapon upon hearing the automatic gunfire. He did stop for a brief moment before entering the building, taking the policeman’s cap so he would be identified as one of the good guys and not mistaken for the terrorist.

Regarding the terrorist, Franco reported they have learned that he had a rich criminal past, including car thefts and other crimes. He was engaged to be married. On the day of the attack he worked a regular day, transporting children to and from school, concluding at 6:00pm.

Upon entering the yeshiva building, he was armed with an AK-47 [Kalashnikov] assault rifle, 9 magazines and two handguns with full magazines as well as a knife.

Some of the Knesset committee members called for the policeman’s dismissal while others stated such an act would not prove particularly productive. To date, no disciplinary actions have been taken against the policeman.

Regarding allegations that police were unprepared for the Jabel Mukaber protest on Sunday night which led to rioting against local Arab residents, Franco insisted that contrary to media reports, police were not surprised by the number of participants, just by their behavior, their decision to begin rioting.

“We did manage to control most of them. Only a small number managed to make their way to Wadi Farouk,” concluded Franco. The Jerusalem commander stated that 22 people were arrested.

Franco stated there are protests in the capital daily and the turnout was no surprise, defending the actions of his officers.

Some members of the Knesset committee expressed their surprise that police expected the participants of the protest to remain orderly.