Father and teen son arrested for hurling rocks at anti-Netanyahu protesters

Police say pair are residents of Rishon Lezion, where Saturday’s attack took place

By ToI Staff 4 September 2022, 9:19 am Edit
Screen capture from video of a protesters falling to the ground as two people throw rocks at a demonstration against former prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Rishon Lezion, September 4, 2022. (Twitter screenshot; used in accordance with Clause 27a of the Copyright Law)
Screen capture from video of a protesters falling to the ground as two people throw rocks at a demonstration against former prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Rishon Lezion, September 4, 2022. (Twitter screenshot; used in accordance with Clause 27a of the Copyright Law)

A man and his teenage son were arrested on suspicion of injuring two people when they hurled rocks at protesters against former prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, police said Sunday.

The pair are residents of the central city of Rishon Lezion, where the attack on the demonstration took place the evening before.

Police said the son is 16 and that officers will request an extension of the pair’s remand if necessary for the investigation.

Members of the left-wing Crime Minister group told the Ynet news site that the individuals arrived in an all-terrain vehicle at Gesher Rishonim — a bridge linking Rishon Lezion and the town of Ness Ziona — and threw stones at the participants of the rally.

Two protesters in their 60s sustained light injuries and were taken to Assaf Harofeh Medical Center for treatment.

Haim Trivax, who suffered a head injury in the attack, told Ynet after the incident that two boys “who looked like brothers” attacked the group with stones, while an adult and a small girl watched from the side.

The attackers fled the scene before police arrived.

Crime Minister activists are campaigning to prevent the return of opposition chief Netanyahu as prime minister in the upcoming election on November 1, holding weekly rallies on Saturday evenings at dozens of bridges across the country. The group refers to the Likud party leader as the “crime minister” due to the criminal indictment filed against him while he was in office. His corruption trial is ongoing.

Police opened an investigation into the assault, and collected evidence from witnesses on the bridge.

Shuli Amir, one of the protest organizers, told the Haaretz daily that the group initially stopped below the bridge and began cursing at the demonstrators.

After the group didn’t respond, Amir said that one of the attackers got out of the vehicle and “threw stones from below toward the bridge,” but did not hit the protesters.

A short while after, the assailants arrived at the bridge with their vehicle and began to attack the protesters, he said.

Video filmed by protesters showed two people accosting them on the bridge. As protesters advanced on them the two retreated and then hurled rocks at the demonstrators, causing one of fall to the ground.

“This is a very serious incident,” Public Security Minister Omer Barlev told the Kan public broadcaster, adding that he had instructed investigators to prioritize the case.

Anti-Netanyahu activists have been physically attacked in the past by right-wing activists, particularly during the height of their demonstrations in 2020 when the now-opposition leader still held the premiership.

Recent polling indicates that neither the anti-Netanyahu parties nor factions loyal to the former prime minister are likely to garner enough seats in the Knesset to form a government after the upcoming election — the fifth since 2019.

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