On the evening of Friday, 7 April, a cowardly terrorist attack tragically hit Tel Aviv, causing the death of Italian citizen Alessandro Parini and the wounding of two other compatriots.
Immediately informed of the attack, the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Antonio Tajani, soon activated the Italian Embassy in Israel to provide any necessary assistance to the injured, their families and friends.
Late in the evening, the Deputy Prime Minister, who kept the Prime Minister constantly informed of developments in the situation, spoke with the victim’s father to express the Government’s deepest condolences and ensure the institutions’ utmost assistance.
From the very first moments, in continuous liaison with the Crisis Unit, the Embassy established telephone contact with the victim’s friends and the injured, providing all the necessary support and assistance, in agreement with the local authorities. Embassy officials promptly went to the hospitals where the wounded were being treated, staying by their side during the night and ensuring that they were given all the necessary care, thanks to close coordination with the Directors of the hospitals involved. At the same time, help was given to all the compatriots who witnessed the attack, accompanying them to the local police station and ensuring that they were given every support in their statements to the judicial authorities.
This morning, Saturday 8 April, the Italian Ambassador to Israel, Sergio Barbanti, met the victim’s friends and offered his condolences. The friends of the victim and one of the two injured men were then accompanied to the airport, escorted at all times by officials of our Embassy and of local authorities, to enable them to return to Italy on the first flight available.
At the same time, the Embassy took care of coordinating, together with the local authorities, the fulfilment of all the necessary procedures for the quick repatriation of mortal remains. Italian officials also coordinated the arrival in Israel of the family member of one of the wounded compatriots, promptly assisting him from the moment of landing and immediately accompanying him to the hospital, thus ensuring his immediate reunion with the injured man.
In the evening, Ambassador Barbanti will travel together with the Foreign Minister of the State of Israel, Eli Cohen, to the Ichilov hospital, where one of the wounded is still being treated. The Israeli Foreign Minister has already expressed his and the entire Israeli people’s condolences for last night’s very severe attack, as well as his sympathy for the wounded and their families.
The Foreign Ministry continues to actively monitor the situation: the Crisis Unit Operations Room (contactable at +39 06/36225) operates 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and continues to maintain constant contact with the Parini family, the families of the injured Italians and with the Italian authorities to provide any necessary assistance for the repatriation operations.