Four Jewish men were indicted on Sunday for their involvement in the stabbing of a 25-year-old Arab man in Jerusalem's Mahane Yehuda market.
The incident took place on May 13 at the peak of the clashes between Arabs and Jews that erupted across the country.
First responders evacuate an Arab man after he was attacked in Jerusalem's Mahane Yehuda market, May 13, 2021
(Video: Alex Gamburg)
The suspects' names have been placed under a gag order. The prosecution is asking to hold them in remand after three of them have been hit with attempted murder charges and another suspect with a clause of aggravated battery.
According to the indictment bill, three of the suspects met during a rally in the capital in protest of the recent spate of attacks on Jews by Arabs where they confronted police forces. They were joined by the fourth suspect after arriving in the Mahane Yehuda market.
Meanwhile, the suspects spotted a man they suspected to be Arab and asked him for his ethnicity.
Upon learning he was Arab, the suspects sprayed the victim with tear gas and started beating him as he tried to flee. One suspect pulled out a knife and stabbed the victim ten times in the back while the other suspects continued beating him.
The suspects fled the scene after several passersby spotted them and began to yell at them.
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First responders at the scene of the attack in Mahane Yehuda market, May 13, 2021
(Photo: Alex Gamburg)
The victim was rushed to the hospital in serious condition.
The defense claimed that the suspects' version of the story is radically different from the one presented in the indictment and claimed that their interrogation was carried out by the Shin Bet domestic security agency under harsh conditions.
Shin Bet announced on May 21 that it had arrested several Jewish suspects for their involvement in the incident.
On the night of the stabbing, police said they were handling numerous riots across the capital, which included throwing rocks, firing fireworks, burning tires and violence against police and civilians.