The burne door to the house
Door to Arab family's Herzliya home torched
Door to home of family of Israeli Arabs who moved from Jerusalem to Herzliya torched; family's father wakes up to smell of smoke, finds burned door and alleged perpetrator escaping; 'People downstairs shouted 'Death to Arabs' at me,' he says; police says investigation underway.
The Niruch family, an Arab-Israeli family residing in Herzliya, awoke late Thursday to find the door to the home was torched by unknown parties. According to the family's patriarch Ayman, the arson was racially-motivated.
"We smelled a really strong smell of smoke and I went to the house's door and saw that it had been torched," Ayman told Ynet. "I saw a man feeling and a group of people downstairs, who called up to me saying 'Death to Arabs.'"
Ayman, a married father of three, settled in Herzliya 15 years ago, moving from Jerusalem. In the past two years the family has been residing in the Shaviv neighborhood.
The burned door to the Niruch family's home
Footage of the alleged arson's aftermath
Fire teams arrived to the scene and put the fire out. A Magen David Adom team of paramedics also arrived to the family's home and examined Ayman's three daughters. His brother, who happened to be visiting, was taken to the Meir Hospital in Kfar Saba for smoke inhalation. Several hours later, Ayman took his wife and daughters to the hospital as well for examinations.
Ayman's brother was hospitalized due to smoke inhalation
"We've always maintained good relations and have no enemies or conflicts," Ayman claimed. "Unfortunately, some racists don't want us in the neighborhood simply because we're Arabs. We've harmed no one. This is a very serious incident and we now fear for our lives."
The Niruch family went back to Jerusalem
The Niruch family decided to take no chances, and left Herzliya for Jerusalem, where it will remain at least for the time being. "I don't want anyone to hurt us. Just like they torched the entrance door, they could well have murdered us so we decided to leave. My daughters are traumatized. My eldest is afraid all the time and told me she didn't want us to be burned," Ayman said.
Police said an investigation was underway.
