Palestinian says settlers torched his car
Civil Administration examining complaint filed by man who made similar accusations in January
The Civil Administration is examining complaints by Palestinians that settlers torched a vehicle near the West Bank village of Umm a-Tain, as part of their "price tag" policy.
The Palestinian whose car was torched had filed a similar complaint in January. Civil Administration inspectors at the site found traces of one vehicle that was burnt and another vehicle covered in flammable material.
The car's owner, Ayyad Suwan, filed a complaint with the police. The Coordination and Liaison Authority informed the Umm a-Tain local council that police are investigating the incident, and the identity of the assailant may be known.
Yossi Dagan, of the Samaria Settler's Committee, rejected claims of arson. "Such a deluded story has not been told in a long time. The village of Umm al-Tain is distant from any point of Jewish settlement.
"This is a hostile village, where cars are burnt frequently as a result of disputes between neighbors or technical malfunctions. The car's owners are trying to produce another smear campaign wit the help of the extreme Left. Even worse, they are trying to get financial compensation from the property tax."
Meanwhile, following another "price tag" reprisal, police are slated to request the court extend the remand of four 18-year-old yeshiva students from Kfar Hasidim.
The four are suspected of spraying graffiti on the walls of a mosque in the nearby town of Ibtin.
According to Superintendent Michael Shafshak of the coastal police, the four denied the allegations against them during questioning, and the investigation continues.
The four 18-year-olds are suspected of spraying graffiti slogan that read: "Up for demolition," "Price tag," and "War will break out in Judea and Samaria." Star of David signs were also sprayed on the building.
"It's not easy reading such things, especially given the fact that the village's mosque was already torched in 1988," the mosque's keeper Muhammad Umriyeh said.
Zevulun Regional Council, which contains Ibtin, has sent representatives to ease tensions and erase the graffiti.
Council Head Dov Yeshurun told Ynet that the perpetrators were "provocateurs whose only aim is to stir up incitement between Jews and Arabs in the region." He added that he does not believe they will succeed in stirring conflict because relations between Jews and Arabs in the area are good.
Shmulik Grossman, Ali Waked, and Ahiya Raved contributed to this report
