Police have taken testimony from the Israeli woman rescued from Jericho on Friday after she was abducted by a Palestinian who led her to an apartment, where she was assaulted.
She told investigators that before the incident, the two had only exchanged messages and spoken by phone for “a certain period of time, and this was the first time we met.”
“At first I didn’t want to meet,” she said. “In the end, I agreed, and he sent me a location to come to. I initially thought he was Jewish. Only later did I find out he was Palestinian.”
When she arrived at the meeting point, she said, “Several people jumped me, and one of them had a gun. He threatened me, forced me into a car and took me to an apartment in Jericho. At some point, after I was attacked, I managed to get away from them and call a friend and the police. After that, more Palestinians arrived.”
Police described the incident as “very serious.” At this stage, it is being investigated as a criminal case, though officials said it could turn out to be a nationalist-motivated attack. Judea and Samaria District Commander Moshe Pinchi assigned the investigation to the district’s major crimes unit.
The Israeli military said last week that after receiving the report, troops rushed to the Jericho area and conducted searches. At the same time, Civil Administration personnel worked to contact the woman, a Russian speaker, and after establishing contact, located her and protected her until security forces arrived. The military emphasized that “entry by Israeli civilians into Area A is dangerous and prohibited by law.”