Ropes Of Window Washer Netanel Arami Intentionally Cut

Authorities believe Palestinian workers may have cut rope of Netanel Arami, who was hanging by the 11th floor of a building, sending him to his death.

Police suspect man who fell to death was murdered: Investigation shows that ropes holding window washer Netanel Arami were intentionally cut • Police looking into possible nationalistic motives • Family accuses authorities of covering up motive for murder, calls protest march in Bat Yam.

A window washer who fell to his death from the 11th floor of a Petach Tikva building at a construction site two weeks ago was murdered, police announced on Tuesday. They said the ropes that had secured Netanel Roei Arami, 26, to the building had been cut intentionally, possibly out of nationalistic motives.

Arami had been strapped into rappeling equipment while at work washing the windows. Initial investigations and evidence from Arami's workmates indicated that he had been working carefully, as he always did. The team of window washers had rappeled off the roof, and when their work was done, lowered themselves all the way down. When Arami's workmates did not see him on the ropes, they searched the area and were shocked to discover him on the ground.

The workers called an ambulance and the Petach Tikva police, who opened an investigation that was later handed off to the Shin Bet security agency.  Since the incident, Arami's family has been angry at the police and their alleged obfuscation of what took place. On Tuesday, Arami's parents and pregnant widow, Moriah, convened a press conference. The couple's two children -- Avia, 4, and Itai, 2 -- were also there.

"We knew from the beginning this was murder, because he was a professional. The fact that he was murdered because he was Jewish leads us to demand that the killers be brought to justice," said Arami's mother, Miriam. "The government needs to draw the right conclusions about how to treat terrorists. I am pleading that Netanel be the last victim. If the punishment isn't harsh enough, I'm afraid it won't be enough. All this whitewashing won't help," she said.

Arami's parents, Uziel and Miriam, and his widow, Moriah.

Uziel Arami, Netanel's father, said, "The loss of my son Netanel is the public's loss. Every day [terrorists] slam us. We weep for what God took from us and want Netanel to be the last victim of the Jewish people. Our strength is in unity. So we are asking the public's and media's help in bringing the truth to light."

Uziel said the family would hold a protest walk Wednesday evening from Yoseftal Street in Bat Yam toward the local police station. Moriah Arami described her late husband as "an amazing father. A man with no enemies … a full partner. A devoted father. A working man who left every day to make a living. An amazing husband."

The family's attorney, from the Honenu National Legal Defense Organization, Hori Nizori, said: "Two weeks ago, Netanel Arami was murdered, and since then welfare authorities have not contacted the family. … Only after two weeks of pressure from us and from MK Moshe Feiglin, did the police agree to partially lift the gag order [on the case] and admit that they are looking into possible nationalistic motives for the murder."

Feiglin said at the press conference that "whenever it's possible to turn a blind eye and stick their head in the sand, the police and the establishment does so, because it's apparently convenient, or because they are afraid of protests. There was pro-Hamas and pro-Islamic State graffiti on the building. Stones from the building were found in nearby playgrounds."

The police have not responded to the family's statements. According to the police, an investigative team has met with the Arami family no fewer than four times, including on Monday with the head detective. The police also said the family knew about the gag order and had received an update when it was partially lifted, and that some 20 minutes after the incident took place, Arami's brother arrived and said that he wanted to notify the rest of the family himself. 

A police source said, "All possibilities are being investigated. It is still unclear if this was nationalistically motivated. There have been no arrests thus far, and the investigation is ongoing and intensive." 'My son was murdered because he was Jewish'. Mother of Netanel Arami, who was killed 2 weeks ago after falling off the 11th floor of a building, criticizes authorities for mishandling the family, calls for capture of perpetrators.

“He told me several times that he was afraid that the Arabs at the construction site would try to kill him by cutting the cables,” his wife, Moria.

Police suspect murder in construction worker’s death: Family of Netanel Arami, who died in a fall two weeks ago, accuses authorities of covering up facts to keep public calm. Police lifted a gag order Tuesday on an investigation into the death of an Israeli construction worker who died in a fall at a building site in Petah Tikvah, confirming that he may have been murdered.

Following the death of Netanel Arami, 27, two weeks ago, in what police initially said was an accidental fall — both the cables he was using to rappel down the face of a building snapped — his family lobbied for police to investigate the possibility that he was murdered. “He told me several times that he was afraid that the Arabs at the construction site would try to kill him by cutting the cables,” his wife, Moria, said, according to Israeli news site NRG.

Arami’s brother, Ohad, said that his brother was a professional with many years’ experience who always employed proper safety measures, and there was no chance the fall could have been an accident. “When they are working and rappelling from high up, they are attached to two cables so that if one snaps, there is a backup cable,” Ohad Arami said. “There is no way that both cables could snap at the same time unless somebody intentionally cut them.”

Last week, Arami’s widow went as far as accusing the police of attempting to cover up the circumstances of her husband’s death. “Maybe they didn’t have a suspect, but they knew what happened, and could’ve given [us] the details of the incident,” she told Channel 10. “They tried to cover things up, so there wouldn’t be an uprising, chaos and war.”

The building Netanel was working on.

"My son was murdered because he was Jewish, there's no other reason," said Miriam, the mother of Netanel Roi Arami, who fell to his death two weeks ago from the 11th floor of a building under construction in Petah Tikva. The Arami family held a press conference on Tuesday afternoon, after police suspicions the death was not an accident were made public earlier in the day. "I call on all government branches to put a stop to those who slaughter us. It's as if we're in a shooting range. No one knows who's next," she said, clarifying that the family "knew this was a murder and not a work accident from the get go."

Police suspects Netanel's murder was nationalistically motivated. Miriam urged for the capture and the execution of judgment of the perpetrators. "Let Netanel be the last victim. If there's no deterring punishment, this would not be the last case. All of these cover-ups won't help. The people are not stupid." Miriam also criticized the police's handling of the family. "They come to tell the family and they find a woman with a baby in her arms, and she collapses, but they ask her to come straight to the station so she could sign off on the autopsy. There's no emotional support from the police. They have to also show sensitivity," she said. "The people of Israel support us, and came to the shiva (Jewish 7 days of mourning), and continue supporting us. We don't get support from the government or any other authority. No one from welfare or the municipality came to visit us," Miriam charged.

Netanel's father, Rabbi Uziel Arami, also spoke at the press conference, saying his son was "not a private victim. He's a public victim that belongs to all Israelis. We see what's happening out there - one time it's an attack with a truck and another time with a tractor. Stones are thrown at kindergartens and there's graffiti in support of Hamas and ISIS. We don't want another victim like Netanel. I'm asking for the truth to be set free, and for things to not be covered up." Choking on tears and struggling to speak, Netanel's widow, Muriya, turned to the gathered reporters and asked: "My son is two years old and asking me where dad is. What do you tell a child that age? I tell him that dad's watching over us from the sky."

Netanel Arami with his wife and children.

Muriya, who is pregnant, said her late husband "had no enemies and he was loved by all. He was a full time father, an amazing husband, dedicated, who did everything. I don't know how my children could grow up without a father."

Attorney Hur Nizri from the organization Honenu, who is representing the family, said: "Two weeks ago Netanel Arami was murdered and until now welfare authorities have failed to contact the family. The family was abandoned and was not taken care of by the authorities, while at the same time it needs to bear the pain of a situation likes this - losing what is most precious to them. The family is determined to fight until the truth comes out, and we expect the police to keep the family updated on the progress of the investigation."

Netanel Arami, 26, owned a construction company contracted to do exterior work on a hi-rise building in central Israel. During the fatal day, Arami was rappelling along the side of the Petah Tikvah building in order to seal vent openings when both his cables snapped and he fell 11 stories to his death.

Over 50 workers were at the site of the time, the majority of which are Israel-Arabs and Palestinians, as well as a few Chinese nations, but none have been arrested. The workers, for their part, claim his death was an accident. During the investigation all were quested about their whereabouts and if they know anything about the suspected murder or who was behind it. Their stories were crosschecked and none were arrested. The police say the investigation continues and all investigation leads are being followed.

According to an initial investigation, Roi Arami left his home in Moshav Ahiezer, said goodbye to his pregnant wife and two children and proceeded to the site. There, he and a group of other rappellers worked on the side of the building, sealing the air ducts of the building's security rooms. The team had finished, but Roi Arami was still working. The crew worked their way down and waited in the car for his arrival. When he failed to show up they began to search for him and were horrified to see he was no longer on the building. A few minutes of additional searches led them to his lifeless body.