Hate crime? Arab teen attacked in J'lem
Police suspect several haredi youths assaulted Arab teenager in capital. Boy suffers moderate wounds
A 15-year-old Arab boy was assaulted on Haim Bar-Lev Street in Jerusalem Monday evening. The police suspect he was attacked by several ultra-Orthodox youths.
The boy sustained a head injury and was rushed to Hadassah Ein Kerem Hospital in Jerusalem. He is said to be in moderate condition.
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In an initial police interview, the Arab teen's friends, who witnessed the attack, said the assailants "appeared to be haredim" and that they fled the scene before they could be detained.
The police are searching for the assailants. The circumstances of the event are being investigated.
"My son said he and his friends were hanging out near the train station when two religious-looking guys showed up. One of them grabbed him and knocked him down and hit him repeatedly over the head," the boy's mother told Ynet.
"People keep talking about peace, but what is this 'peace'? What do they want? What did my son do to them?"
The assault is the latest in a wave of racist attacks disrupting Jerusalem over the past few months.
In recent weeks, two Arab men – an employee of the Mamilla Hotel and a gas station attendant – were the victims of hate crimes. Both suffered moderate wounds.
The police tracked down the assailants in both cases. One of them is currently standing trial, while the other's indictment is pending.
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