Terror in the Hills - a true story

Police and medics carry Kristine

"...for such a time as this."
This quote from the biblical story of Esther is an important reminder of the part we all play in the history of mankind.  The story of Esther is also a reminder of those among us who seek to destroy people groups, take lives, and deny the right of existence to many. 'Terrorism' is no longer an unusual word in our daily lives, and victims of terror continue to increase among us.


Your People My People is committed to bringing into the light, some of the stories of such victims, to increase awareness of the severity of such acts, realising the terrible impact for those who survive and for the families and friends of those who do not survive.  This is one of those stories:

Kristine Luken

In December 2010, Kay Wilson and Kristine Luken were hiking in the hills near Jerusalem with Kay's small dog, Peanut, when they were approached by two men. Within half an hour the two men had bound and stabbed both women repeatedly, murdering Kristine and leaving Kay for dead, stabbed Peanut, and wondered off a little way to have a leisurely cigarette. The men were members of a terrorist cell loyal to Hamas and their motivation was political - killing these ladies was an act of honour because they believed them to be Jewish.


Kay, a Jewish immigrant from the UK and Israeli tour guide, knew her only chance to survive was to play dead, even though she could hear her friend being stabbed just a few feet away from her. She wished Kristine would do the same but sadly this was not the case.  Once her attackers had moved away, she stumbled 1.2km (3/4 mile) bare-foot, hands bound behind her back, with broken ribs, a punctured lung, and bleeding badly from 12 stab wounds.  She made it to a picnic site in the National Park where she began to receive assistance from those who found her.  No-one, including the doctors, can understand how she was able to make it so far over rough terrain with those kind of injuries.  Kay, as was Kristine, is a strong believer in Jesus. After revisiting the site of the attack some weeks later with officials, she knows it was a miracle.

Peanut survives

There are many more details, some quite graphic, that Kay wrote about in a booklet of her story to help with her personal recovery. Because of her survival and testimony, not only were Kay's attackers arrested, but also the terror cell to which they belonged was exposed and apprehended.  11 months later, the first of these terrorists was convicted and sentenced for the murder of Kristine, another Jewish woman he murdered in a separate incident, and for the attempted murder of Kay.  Sentencing for other members of the terror cell has not yet been scheduled.  Kay was concerned at one point that her attackers could be part of the 1000+ Palestinian prisoners that were released in order to have kidnapped Israeli soldier, Gilad Shalit, returned to Israel after being held by Hamas for over 5 years.  Although this isn't likely to be the case, it does bring home the sad reality of what terror and terrorist acts can do to a country and the victims of their crimes, long after the story has dropped from our news channels.


Your People My People would like to help Kay with some of her ongoing recovery costs.  If you would like to be part of that, please use the 'Donate Online' link at the top left of this page.

If you would like to receive a copy of Kay's booklet, please email us so we can send you the details.