2 hurt in scuffle between Jews, Druze
Scuffle breaks out between ultra-Orthodox whose bus mistakenly enters the Druze village of Beit Jan and local residents; residents claim the ultra-Orthodox had physically assaulted local couple and their 13-year-old daughter while they were working in a field but passenger says 30 ultra-Orthodox on board bus were attacked by group of children who hurled bottles, stones at them
Three people were lightly injured Thursday when a scuffle broke out between ultra-Orthodox Jews whose bus had mistakenly entered the Druze village of Beit Jan and local residents.
Among those injured were two ultra-Orthodox and one Druze.
Residents claim the ultra-Orthodox group had provoked a local couple and their 13-year-old daughter while they were working in a field; the Jews, who traveled to the area to visit the nearby Har Meron Preserve, pursued to physically assault the family, the residents said.
The father, 48, sustained light injuries and was evacuated to a Nahariya hospital for further treatment. The mother, who was also hurt in the incident, was released from the hospital.
According to the locals, the ultra-Orthodox called on the family to leave the house as “it is not their land.”
However, one passenger says the 30 ultra-Orthodox on board the bus were attacked, without provocation, by a group of children who hurled bottles and stones at them as they were making their way back from a visit to the grave of a saint in Har Meron.
Some of the ultra-Orthodox got off the bus “to protect themselves,” he said.
The ultra-Orthodox were then stopped by hundreds of Druze, and a few passengers were hurt; the bus was able to head out of the village following police intervention, the passenger said.
Amal Quis, whose father was injured in the incident, told Ynet, “My father was picking grapes with my mother and 13-year-old sister. More than 80 ultra-Orthodox approached them and suddenly began to throw stones. They told my family to leave because the land belongs to them. They threw a stone at my father and split his head open. Then five ultra-Orthodox attacked my sister and pushed her to the ground. The starting chanting, ‘Death to the Arabs.’”
'Arab citizens are forced to protect themselves'
Following the incident Knesset Member Mohammad Barakeh (Hadash-Ta`al) sent an urgent letter to Internal Security Minister Gideon Ezra, saying, “This is another incident in a wave of racial and fascist violence were have been witnessing for some time now.”
“We should expect more incidents in light of the security forces’ helplessness. The government will bare the responsibility for the ramifications of these incidents. The Arab population will not be able to stand by in silence,” he said in the letter.
The Masawa Center for the rights of Arab citizens of Israel turned to Police Chief Moshe Karadi demanding an investigation of the incident, focusing on why only two police officers arrived at the scene more than two hours after the Quis family reported the incident.
The center blamed police for the recent escalation in violence against Arab citizens.
“The Attorney General (Menachem Mazuz) is displaying unbelievable forgiveness toward the far-right’s incitement against Arab citizens,” the center said in a statement.
“Citizens are forced to protect themselves, such as during the incident in Shfaram and other places.”
