Wounded Man Gives Terrorist the Finger as Tel Aviv Returns to Partying

TEL AVIV – Tel Aviv terror victim Ido Lazan’s first act upon waking up in the hospital was to flip the terrorist the finger (pictured). Meanwhile, Tel Aviv sprang back to life with an alcohol festival on the street where the attack took place.

Upon regaining consciousness, Lazan, who was wounded in the attack that killed three and injured several others, stuck his middle finger up in an apparent message to Nashat Melhem, the Arab Israeli perpetrator of the attack.

The image of Lazan flipping the bird has gone viral on Facebook  and is accompanied by the Hebrew statement, “[Ido’s] opinion of the terrorist.” Alongside it is another image of Lazan, strapped to monitors and respiratory machines, giving the thumbs up sign in an apparent gesture to well-wishers.

Lazan was on his way to a birthday party when he was shot and wounded. He lost his dog, Django, in the confusion, but with the help of another viral Facebook post, strangers were able to locate the dog in a nearby building.

Meanwhile, the pubs on Dizengoff Street, the main Tel Aviv thoroughfare where the shooting took place, had  more business than usual as people lined up to join NonStop Dizengoff, an event put on by the Tel Aviv municipality on Monday night.

Organized at the last minute, the event’s primary aim was to show the world that terrorism would not stop people – and Tel Aviv residents in particular – from enjoying life. 25 bars along Dizengoff Street participated, offering one plus one on all alcoholic beverages.

Tel Aviv mayor Ron Huldai said that residents of Tel Aviv are hardy and know how to handle things thrown their way.

“Tel Aviv is the nonstop city and as such does not stop for anything,” said Huldai. “It was important to the Tel Aviv-Yafo Municipality to hold the event NONSTOP DIZENGOFF because it benefited all parties. The municipality wants life to go back to normal routine, the bar owners want business to go back to usual, and the public wants to feel re-assured that life is going back to its regular routine, and of course to get a 1+1 on a beer. We were happy to see that the event was a great success and the bars on Dizengoff were once again full.”

Huldai added that the municipality has beefed up security in the city since the attack. He also urged parents to resume sending their children to school after attendance dropped to 50 percent following the attack.