From the Liveblog of
Saturday, February 12, 2022
After firebombing, far-right MK to again set up ‘parliamentary office’ in Sheikh Jarrah
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Far-right MK Itamar Ben Gvir says he will again set up a “parliamentary office” in Sheikh Jarrah after a firebomb was thrown at the home of a Jewish family in the flashpoint Jerusalem neighborhood.
No one was home at the time of firebombing, which occurred during Shabbat. Police say an officer was lightly hurt from smoke inhalation after entering the home.
Citing initial findings from the scene that raised suspicions of arson, police say the Jerusalem district commander ordered a “substantial” increase in operations in Sheikh Jarrah, including of undercover officers.
“Additionally, he ordered the involvement of special forces in the operations, as well as to thoroughly investigate the case with all the necessary means,” a police statement says.
Despite the move by police, Ben Gvir says he will set up a makeshift “office” in Sheikh Jarrah.
“If terrorists wanted to burn a Jewish family alive and there are no cops, then I’m arriving on the scene,” he writes on Twitter.
Meretz MK Mossi Raz accuses Ben Gvir of “trying to set the area ablaze and stir up a war, just as he did in May,” referring to fighting that erupted in Gaza after the Hamas terror group fired rockets toward Jerusalem amid tensions over Sheikh Jarrah and the nearby Temple Mount.
The Times of Israel Community.