Exclusive interview with Canadian-Israeli shot in West Bank: Jerusalem post report.
Adam Ezekiel, a Canadian-Israeli civilian who moved to Israel in 2009 after becoming religious in 2008, considers it a blessing that he is alive today. The incident occurred on July 2 while Ezekiel was on a tour in the West Bank, at a lookout point over Nablus. He heard a sudden bang and felt intense pain coursing through the right side of his body.
“I didn’t know if I was having a heart attack or a stroke,” Ezekiel told The Jerusalem Post.
Soon, he realized he had been shot, though there was not much visible blood through his dark-blue shirt, causing confusion among those around him. An IDF medic assisted by removing his shirt and confirming the gunshot wound, revealing the bullet lodged in his upper back near his right armpit.
Authorities reported that they located the shooter and engaged in gunfire, resulting in the assailant's death and that of several other gunmen. The IDF could not confirm whether the gunmen were associated with any recognized terrorist group and did not provide an exact casualty count.
Following a swift evacuation to a hospital, Ezekiel received unexpected news from doctors. “The head of trauma said, ‘We’ve decided we should keep the bullet in,’” Ezekiel recounted that he thought the Doctor was joking and asked him to take it out.
The medical team explained that surgically removing the bullet posed unnecessary risks of nerve and muscle damage. They also noted that Ezekiel's muscular build, as a fitness trainer, had likely prevented further harm. “The bullet was about a millimetre away from my lungs, and had my muscle mass not stopped it, it would have pierced my lungs,” Ezekiel explained.
Instead of surgery, Ezekiel received pain relief, antibiotics, bandages, and a sling. Nothing short of a miracle considering he had been shot with the bullet remaining lodged in his body.
Despite traveling in an armored bus and being accompanied by IDF soldiers in a military vehicle, Ezekiel admitted feeling unsafe leading up to the shooting incident saying he felt as though they were 'walking targets.'
