Arabs throw stones at IDF soldiers
Arabs throw stones at IDF soldiersPhotography project of Otzma Yehudit

Arab rioters attacked IDF soldiers near the town of Yitzhar in Samaria Thursday.

The incident began as part of the disturbances that Arabs have been carrying out in the village of Urif in recent months, during which they march up the mountain towards one of the hills of Yitzhar.

This morning too, some 15 Arabs from the village marched towards Yitzhar. The residents of Yitzhar who were in the area descended towards them in order to remove them from the area, and a confrontation ensued.

Security forces arrived at the scene. The Border Police force moved the Jewish residents back to their town while a force from the Paratroopers Brigade attempted to bring the Arabs back to their village.

At first, the force attempted to talk to the rioters to convince them to return to their village, but dozens of Arabs attacked the soldiers and threw stones at them at close range. One officer opened fire and wounded one of the rioters.

ערבים תוקפים חיילים סמוך ליצהרפרוייקט הצילום של עוצמה יהודית

The leaders of Yitzhar demanded that the security forces act to prevent such marches on the town by Arabs before they take place.

"The soldiers maintain our security on a daily basis, and at this event they were in real danger of life," said Yitzhar secretary general Uriah Cohen, the settlement's secretary general.

"We expect that the security establishment will act against the village in a deterrent manner that will prevent these disturbances from happening in advance. The first step is to issue a closed military zone order on the outskirts of the village and the area in which the rioters are operating and the area where the Arabs of the village riot on an almost daily basis," he added.