Palestinian film crew at scene of riot
Palestinian film crew at scene of riotOved Arad, Regavim

A police officer was injured Sunday as dozens of Palestinian Arab men uprooted olive trees and hurled rocks in what has been described as a staged provocation.

The Palestinian Authority has been accused of staging the riot based on the large number of camera crews that were present and filming from the beginning.

The riot took place in the E1 area, a contested region between Jerusalem and the Jerusalem suburb of Maaleh Adumim. Israel has announced plans to build in the area – which is part of the Maaleh Adumim municipality – angering the PA, which demands the territory in question as part of the Arab state it is seeking to establish in Judea and Samaria.

The Arab attackers, residents of the nearby town of Anata, vandalized an Israeli-owned olive grove in the area, damaging dozens of trees and seriously damaged local infrastructure.

When Israeli police came to stop them, they began throwing rocks and other projectiles, injuring one police officer. Several of the rioters were arrested.

The Regavim movement, which fights PA efforts to seize control of land in Judea and Samaria, termed the incident “particularly severe.” In a statement released after the event, the group noted “the riot and the damage done, the provocative involvement of the Palestinian Authority, and most seriously, the mistake made by the IDF Coordinator in what looks like cooperation from his side, even if passive, with the PA’s activity.”

The group called on the IDF and the Defense Ministry to investigate the incident, to bring the attackers to justice, and to “send a strong, uncompromising message to the Palestinian Authority to stop its dangerous incitement in territory under Israel’s control.”