Did teacher assault IDF officer?

Resident of West Bank settlement of Yitzhar detained on suspicion he hurled stones at IDF Personnel Directorate Head Elazar Stern last week
Efrat Weiss

Police arrested a teacher from the West Bank settlement of Yitzhar Wednesday on suspicion of attacking IDF Personnel Directorate Head Elazar Stern at the Western Wall last week.

Stern arrived at the Western Wall with his family to

Stern Talks

'I'll keep coming to the Western Wall' / Hanan Greenberg

IDF Personnel chief comes under attack at Western Wall but vows to keep returning to site; on his second visit to the Wall, attackers call Stern "Nazi"; Sharon blasts incidents as "criminal violence"

Full story

pray when he was attacked by about 100 right-wingers who yelled out "traitor" and "we will never forget, we will never forgive."

The crowds threw stones at Stern, who needed a police escort for him and his family to leave the site once they had finished praying.

Following the incident, Jerusalem police began arresting suspects involved in the attack. Three people have so far been arrested, questioned and released with a warning.

Stern: I'll continue to visit the Western Wall

On Wednesday, police in the West Bank arrested a 32-year-old settler in the Beit El settlement. The teacher was detained on suspicion of throwing stones at Stern along with other right-wingers.

During an initial investigation, the

suspect claimed he knew police were looking for him. He did not object to the arrest and was handed over to the Jerusalem District police for further questioning.

The day after the incident, Stern told Ynet he would not stop coming to the Western Wall for prayers.

"I wasn't scared, but it was a difficult situation, it was very sad, especially for the religious public, because they actually tried to prevent a Jew from going to the Western Wall," he said.

"The Western Wall doesn't belong to anyone and no one has the authority to prevent a Jew from going there," he added.

Prime Minister Ariel Sharon telephoned Stern and offered his support.