Ex-Zionist says killed 'pro-Palestine' woman in Islamophobic murder

A South African man from a prominent Jewish family has described why he stabbed to death a mother and wounded her husband and son in a suburb of the eastern city of Durban, a shocking admission that has sparked outrage in the country which leads a genocide case against Israel at the International Court of Justice.

Grayson Beare, 44, who has been charged with murder and two counts of attempted murder over the attack, which took place on Sunday, said he attacked the family for their pro-Palestine views, according to local media and a viral video.

The video on social media from what appears to be a waiting area of the Durban Magistrates Court shows the suspect being questioned by someone off camera where Beare says he used a knife to attack Halima Hoosen-Preston early on Sunday and critically wound her husband and 14-year-old son.

He says he attacked Hoosen-Preston because she hated his family and friends. "She and her family thought that it was entertaining that my cousins were killed in Israel," he claims.

"The woman died, and her family members, who were also allegedly stabbed multiple times, were seriously injured," said Natasha Ramkisson-Kara, a spokeswoman for the National Prosecuting Authority.

Beare was arrested at the crime scene — the home of the victims — in the early hours of Sunday "in possession of a blood-stained knife", police said.

"The woman was declared dead at the scene and the two injured victims were rushed to a nearby hospital."

Detectives initially said the motive of the violence was not clear.

But a 10-year-old survivor — understood to be the woman's daughter — told investigators that "the suspect stated that he was stabbing them because they supported Palestine."

On Tuesday, Beare appeared before the court where the charges were read. The case was adjourned the case to June 11 to allow Beare to undergo a mental assessment.

Beare is the son of the chairperson of both Beare Holdings and the South African Holocaust and Genocide Foundation Julian Beare.

The Beare family sought to distance themselves from their relative, saying. "We totally reject any association with what he [Beare] said and what he has done."

Pro-Palestine activists under attack

It is not the first time that a pro-Palestine supporter has been attacked in South Africa.

In April, pro-Palestine supporters expressed outrage after two men with an Israeli flag were seen on social media scuffling with two women activists in Cape Town.

A viral video on X showed the men attacking a pro-Palestine woman activist and pulling her hair, while another woman was heard warning them to not touch a woman.

When the second woman joined the shuffle to help her friend, she was pushed by one of the men.

Advocate Shameemah Salie, national spokesperson for the Al Jama-ah political party, told Anadolu news agency at the time that pro-Palestine protesters had been picketing every weekend in Simonstown near Cape Town when pro-Israeli supporters started counter-protests.

"Allegations are that last weekend one of the pro-Zionist members made a statement to females in the pro-Palestinian group that they are beautiful and had they been in Gaza Hamas would rape them," she said.

Salie added that verbal responses ensued leading to one of the pro-Israeli men grabbing a pro-Palestine man and dragging and beating him, while another man pushed a woman and attempted to hit her.

"This matter is very concerning. This is the second matter of allegations of threats of rape against pro-Palestinian activists that Al Jama-ah has been asked to assist with," she said.

Rise in Islamophobia

Reported discrimination and attacks against Muslims and Palestinians reached a record high in the US in 2023, driven by rising Islamophobia and bias propelled by Israel's war on Gaza, according to an advocacy group.

Complaints totaled 8,061 in 2023, a 56 percent rise from the year before and the highest since the Council on American-Islamic Relations began records nearly 30 years ago.

About 3,600 of those incidents occurred from October to December, CAIR said.

Human rights advocates have similarly reported a global rise in Islamophobia, anti-Palestinian bias since October last year.

US incidents have included the fatal October stabbing of six-year-old Palestinian American Wadea Al-Fayoume in Illinois, the November shooting of three students of Palestinian descent in Vermont and the February stabbing of a Palestinian American man.