Right-wing rioters set fire to a NIS 3-million IDF facility used to thwart terror attacks, the military said on Monday, hours after an attempt to storm a base housing the West Bank brigade command center.
Dozens of rioters gathered outside the base in protest after troops fired shots that injured a 14-year-old youth who was hurling rocks at their vehicle. Some attempted to break into the base and others vandalized vehicles used by the military and security forces. The boy was injured.
Far-right rioters outside West Bank brigade headquarters
The military said the officer in charge acted according to IDF regulations and was responding to a rock-throwing incident he initially believed was done by Palestinians targeting the force.
But the group, made up of settlers and far-right supporters, posted his photo, calling him a murderer and demanding his prosecution.
"Dozens of Israeli civilians gathered at the entrance of the Binyamin Regional Brigade Headquarters. The gathering became violent and some of the civilians at the scene attacked the security forces, sprayed pepper spray at them and vandalized military vehicles," the military said in a statement.
Far-right rioters outside West Bank brigade headquarters
(IDF)
As of Monday morning, no arrests were made.
On Friday, scores of far-right protesters, many from outside the West Bank, clashed with IDF troops, including in physical altercations. They vandalized vehicles and hurled stones after they were prevented from entering a Palestinian village where they had rioted a day earlier and set fire to property. Three Palestinians were shot dead and an investigation was underway. There, too, no arrests were made.
According to the military, the rioters hurled stones toward them and physically and verbally assaulted the soldiers, including the battalion commander. "In addition, the civilians vandalized and damaged security forces' vehicles, and attempted to ram the security forces," the IDF said.
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The riot was condemned by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz, along with others.
But the rioters' actions were not initially condemned by some ministers in the government, including Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, who also serves as a minister in the Defense Ministry. He demanded an inquiry into the shooting of the Israeli youth.
On Monday, Smotrich said in a post that violence against troops and security forces crosses the line and called on the police to investigate. "The settlements in Judea and Samaria represent the beautiful face of the State of Israel and has no connection to the kind of incidents reported this morning," he said.
The military said it expected Israel Police to bring the rioters to justice. The IDF said the rioters were disrupting the soldiers' mission to fight Palestinian terror.