Jews in Givat Ronen in Samaria found themselves facing an Arab invasion on the Sabbath – with nothing to defend themselves with but a handful of stones.
The incident began when Arab men from two nearby Palestinian Authority towns made their way to Givat Ronen at the same time. The men crossed the security path around the Jewish village and made their way into town, where they began uprooting olive trees.
Normally, one or two Jewish residents would have fired their guns in the air, driving off the invaders. However, many residents have had their guns confiscated.
Instead, local Jews tried to frighten off the attackers using rocks, with limited success. The invaders fled only after IDF soldiers arrived and began spraying tear gas.
The assault on Givat Ronen was “obviously organized,” said one local resident.
The Samaria Residents Council said, “Arab violence is encouraged by Israel's weak response. Each week we see the growing courage of the Arabs, who are not afraid to reach the outskirts of Jewish towns and carry out acts of destruction, pogroms.”
An IDF spokesperson later said, “This evening there was a mutual clash between Jewish residents and Palestinians near Burin, south of Shechem. A fight broke out during which both sides threw stones. Security forces responded with anti-riot measures and warning fire in the air, and the crowd dispersed.
Today, Jewish residents of Judea and Samaria have more than 3,000 guns provided by the IDF to members of local security squads... Any request for additional weapons will be considered according to the criteria.”