Suspected price tag attack in Sharon Arab town

Police regard incident as an escalation of extremist settler activities

A suspected price tag attack left 19 cars vandalized in the predominately Arab Israeli town of Jaljulia, police said Tuesday.

The perpetrators slashed some of the cars’ tires and scrawled graffiti reading “God is king” on some of the walls, according to a report by Israeli news portal Walla. This was the first such incident in the Israeli territory known as the ‘Triangle,’ a concentration of Arab towns along the Green Line in the Sharon.

Police, who have opened an investigation, regard the incident as an escalation of price tag activities.

In February, the tires of around 30 cars were slashed in the Jerusalem neighborhood of Sharafat in a suspected price tag attack.

Extremists associated with the settler movement have been carrying out acts of vandalism in recent years, in retaliation for Palestinian attacks and to protest what they perceive as the Israeli government’s pro-Palestinian policies.

Mosques, churches, dovish Israeli groups and even Israeli military bases have been targeted in these so-called “price tag” assaults.

The attacks have been widely condemned by Israeli leaders across the political spectrum.

The Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.