More details of the kidnapping of three youths are emerging, as police say the incident was criminally motivated and not nationalistic, and blame the victims.

The three Jewish youths, aged 16, 17 and 18, stopped a car driven by an Arab (which some reports say was a taxi) at the French Hill junction in the early morning hours and asked to be taken to Beit El in Samaria. Instead of taking them there the driver turned into the Arab neighborhood of Shuafat, where he and two other men robbed them of their cellphones and cash.

They then drove off, leaving the youths the street, where several dozen Arabs began gathering around them menacingly. One youth managed to alert police somehow (one report says it was by shouting from a rooftop) at around 5:00 AM. Police came and rescued the boys who were unharmed.

Police say they are treating the incident as a criminally motivated one, and not nationalistic. They also blame the victims for hitching a ride with an Arab driver.