Palestinians shoot at bus of Israelis illegally visiting Nablus tomb, injuring one
Bus driver hurt and arrested along with 19 ultra-Orthodox Israelis — said to be members of Shuvu Bonim cult — for entering area without IDF authorization
The driver of a bus that took a group of Israelis to visit Joseph’s Tomb in the Palestinian city of Nablus in the West Bank overnight Tuesday-Wednesday without prior coordination with the military was lightly injured when gunmen opened fire at his vehicle.
According to reports in Hebrew media, the driver dropped the group of men at the tomb and his vehicle was attacked by the gunmen as he left the area.
The Israel Defense Forces then sent troops to the area to extract the pilgrims and the bus driver.
In a statement, the military said the men were handed over to the Israel Police for questioning.
Police said that after the incident, “19 Israelis, seven of them minors, and a bus driver were arrested” for illegally entering the Nablus area without prior coordination.
“All the civilians were arrested for further investigation at the Ariel police station for violating an IDF order prohibiting entry into Palestinian Authority areas. After the investigation, a decision will be made whether to request an extension of their detention,” police said.
The police reiterated that entering Palestinian Authority areas (Area A) poses a “real life-threatening danger and is prohibited by law.”
22 חסידי ברלנד נכנסו באוטובוס לקבר יוסף בשכם, לבדם וללא תיאום עם הצבא. נהג האוטובוס הוריד אותם במקום ובדרכו החוצה מהעיר, מחבלים ירו לעברו ופצעו אותו באורח קל. צה"ל נכנס לקבר יוסף והוציא את החסידים, שהועברו יחד עם הנהג לטיפול המשטרה@carmeldangor pic.twitter.com/Ay9kv6iXN9
— כאן חדשות (@kann_news) December 18, 2024
The Kan public broadcaster reported the men were members of the ultra-Orthodox Shuvu Bonim cult led by convicted sex offender Rabbi Eliezer Berland.
Last week, three members of the sect were lightly injured when gunmen opened fire at them during another unauthorized visit to the tomb.
In June, a number of members of the sect entered Nablus in an unauthorized attempt to visit the tomb, leading the army to send a large number of forces into the area to retrieve them.
Before the war that began October 7, 2023, busloads of Orthodox Jews visited Joseph’s Tomb under IDF protection on a nearly monthly basis, and the pilgrimages almost always sparked violent clashes with Palestinian locals.
The IDF bars Israeli citizens from entering Palestinian cities without prior authorization and protection, and some criticize the monthly incursions as an unnecessary provocation that places Israeli soldiers at risk.
The shrine, regarded by some as the final resting place of the biblical Joseph, is located inside Area A of the West Bank, which is officially under complete Palestinian Authority control, though the Israeli military regularly enters despite Palestinian opposition.
Berland, 86, has served separate prison sentences in the past for sex offenses and fraud. He had previously spent years on the lam from Israeli authorities and was also detained in connection with murders allegedly carried out by members of his cult, before being released.
