Police arrest two more suspects over firebombing of Jewish home in Sheikh Jarrah

Two suspects were arrested in connection with the alleged firebombing of a Jewish home in the contested East Jerusalem neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah last week, police said Thursday.

The suspects join two others arrested earlier this week over the alleged arson attack, which touched off a fresh round of violence in the neighborhood that Israeli leaders have warned could snowball into a larger regional conflagration.

“Following a covert operation, two additional suspects believed to be involved in the serious incident were arrested last night in East Jerusalem,” police said in a statement.

The suspects, both in their 20s, were being questioned by the Shin Bet following their arrest. Authorities did not say where they were from.

Police are expected to ask the court to deny bail until the investigation is complete.

Two other suspects were arrested earlier this week, with officers finding eight Molotov cocktails, gloves and a knit cap while searching the home of one of the suspects.

During clashes between Arab and Jewish residents last Friday, a firebomb was allegedly thrown at a Jewish family home in Sheikh Jarrah, which has been a locus of tensions due to a push by right-wing Israelis to evict Palestinians from homes they claim belonged to Jewish families before 1948.

No injuries were reported in the fire. However, the house was badly damaged and police said an officer was lightly hurt from smoke inhalation after entering the home.

Citing initial findings from the scene that raised suspicion of arson, police said the Jerusalem district commander had ordered a “substantial” increase in police presence in Sheikh Jarrah, also known as the Shimon Hatzaddik neighborhood, including of undercover officers and special forces.

An Arab resident of Sheikh Jarrah and a neighbor of the Jewish family told Hebrew-language news site Ynet that “it didn’t seem like [the suspects] wanted to scare” the Jewish family,” but “to actually burn them alive.”

זהו ביתו של טל ישובייב, פורעים ערבים שרפו את מכוניתו כבר 9 פעמים, ובמהלך השבת הם שרפו את ביתו. בנס המשפחה לא שהתה בביתה השבת, ובכך חייה ניצלו. היכן אתם אבירי זכויות האדם שעכשיו אתם שותקים? היכן משטרת ישראל והמפכ"ל הכושל התולגותייה? למה אתם מחכים שיקרה אסון? חיי יהודים הפכו הפקר! pic.twitter.com/x78dF72mMK

— איתמר בן גביר (@itamarbengvir) February 12, 2022

Jewish residents of the neighborhood and their supporters, including far-right Religious Zionism MK Itamar Ben Gvir, accuse the police of failing to properly secure the neighborhood.

On Sunday, Ben-Gvir set up a makeshift office — a table under an awning — in Sheikh Jarrah on Sunday, sparking more violent clashes between Israeli and Palestinians.

In May, the pending evictions of several Palestinian families from the neighborhood helped fuel clashes in Jerusalem that kicked off an 11-day conflict between Israel and the Gaza-ruling Hamas terror group, as well as deadly bouts of street violence between Arabs and Jews inside Israel.

Emanuel Fabian and Tal Schneider contributed to this report.