The Nazareth Police along with Shin Bet officers arrested four 16 and 17-year old Arab teenagers on Saturday night on suspicion of hurling stones at cars in northern Israel
on Saturday evening.
The four, who implicated themselves in the act, were interrogated by the Nazareth Police and by the Northern District Police. Sources in the police told Ynet the motive for the youths' actions was still unclear.
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The four will be brought before the Nazareth Magistrates' Court later on Sunday, where the police will ask they be remanded to custody.
At around 6:30 pm on Saturday, the Northern Police received a call from a driver who said car was stoned in the area of Route 77 – leading from Hamovil Intersection to Alonim. Several minutes later, a Shin Bet officer reported a similar incident, which was followed by a third report, this time by police officers patrolling the area.
Route 77 experienced heavy traffic in the weekend, prompting the police to close it off, for the drivers' safety.
Chief Superintendent Avi Haliwa, head of the Nazareth Police, told Ynet the decision to close the road "was a command decision, made to ensure people's safety… Last night posed a real risk to the drivers and we were very lucky the incident ended the way it did."
Only after locating the perpetrators with the assistance of the Shin Bet, the Nazareth Police said it was unlikely the stoning was organized in advance. "This seems to be a local thing," said Haliwa, "but nevertheless, we are only in the beginning of the investigation."
The police intend to question 16 other teen, believed to have taken part in the incident. The area has seen three similar stonings since the beginning of 2008.
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