3 Jewish teens busted for anti-Arab vandalism in Galilee
Suspects confess to torching, vandalizing cars in retaliation for Sarona Market attack in which 4 were killed
Three Jewish Israeli teens were arrested earlier this week for allegedly torching and vandalizing cars last month in the Galilean Arab village of Yafia, law enforcement authorities said.
The three 15-year-olds were nabbed by the police’s nationalist crimes unit for setting two cars on fire and spray painting “price tag” and “revenge” on other vehicles in a car dealership in the community near Nazareth, the police and Shin Bet security agency said Thursday.
So-called price tag attacks, usually arson and graffiti, have been carried out by Jewish extremists against non-Jews and against IDF army targets in response to terror attacks as well as Israeli policies they don’t like.
The teens were from the northern communities of Carmiel and Balfouria and the West Bank settlement of Alon Moreh. They have not been identified because they are minors.
The suspects confessed to the charges and said their motive was retaliation for the Sarona terror attack, in which two Palestinian gunmen killed four Israeli civilians in a packed cafe in Tel Aviv.
The Shin Bet said a statement that an interrogation of the three suspects found that they had planned the attack in advance in response to other Palestinian terror attacks. But they decided to act following the June 8 Sarona attack, and followed through two days later.
The Shin Bet also said it uncovered connections between the three suspects and radical West Bank settler youth.
“Solving the attack and arresting the suspects is another step in a series of actions aimed at foiling the actions of a Jewish terror cell that have carried out attacks in recent years,” it said in a statement.
The agency said that measures taken to crack down on Jewish extremism “have brought about a significant drop in the number of violent incidents and terrorism against Palestinians and Arab citizens of Israel.”
The detention of two of the suspects lasted until Thursday, and the third was to be held until Friday. They were brought Thursday before the Nazareth Magistrate’s Court for their detention to be extended.
The Times of Israel Community.