Suspected antiquities looter arrested in West Bank with thousands of coins
Trove dates from various historical periods, including artifacts thousands of years old; indictment expected soon
Stuart Winer is a breaking news editor at The Times of Israel.
Israeli authorities accompanied by security forces on Tuesday arrested a West Bank Palestinian suspected of stealing and trading in antiquities, seizing thousands of items during an operation in the village of Kafr Qallil near Nablus.
The Civil Administration, which governs areas of the West Bank under Israeli control, said that among the artifacts the suspect had in his possession were ancient coins from various periods, some of them dating back to when coins first made an appearance in the region, as well as from the Persian period that began in 539 BCE, the Hellenistic period that began in 333 BCE and the Jewish revolt against the Roman rule of 66-73 CE.
The hoard was valued at hundreds of thousands of shekels.
An investigation began several months ago that culminated in the arrest.
The suspect was being interrogated and charges are expected to be filed by military prosecutors in the next few days. Palestinian suspects from the West Bank are tried by Israel’s military court in the territory.
IDF Brig. Gen. Fares Atila, the head of the Civil Administration, said in a statement it was an “important and significant operation that cut off the chain of trade in antiquities in Judea and Samaria” — the Biblical names for the West Bank regions.
The Times of Israel Community.