Palestinian Authority Arabs repeatedly attacked Jews on their way to and from the Peace House in Hevron on Saturday. According to a report published on the Hevron Jewish Community website, eyewitnesses reported that IDF soldiers did little to prevent the Arabs from attacking. Four Jewish youths were injured by rock throwing. In addition, a Border Police officer reportedly threw a Jewish woman to the ground several times and beat her.
The woman in question, Ateret Levinger, is the wife of the head of the Kiryat Arba Regional Council. She described, in an interview, how she attempted to go from the Peace House to Kiryat Arba with her ten-year-old daughter and was stopped by Border Police officers. Shortly afterwards, without provocation, one of the officers pushed her to the ground and afterwards cocked his gun at her.
Rabbi Uzi Sharbaff watched the scene from a window of the Peace House. He concurred that the Border Police officer brutally threw the woman to the ground and afterwards cocked his gun at her. Concerned, he alerted those in the Peace House and they went down to the woman's aid.
Rabbi Sharbaff said that after watching this, neighboring Arabs were emboldened to begin throwing rocks and cement blocks at the Jews. The police stood by and watched as a fight developed between the two sides. When more Border Police arrived they beat the Jews and not the Arabs. When many Arabs began to join the fray, the Border Police finally began to shoot in the air. Rabbi Sharbaff says that they did not witness one Arab being arrested throughout the entire altercation.
Shlomo Levinger, who also experienced the attacks, confirmed the other eyewitness accounts. He stated that four youths were injured by the rock throwing, one of whom required stitches. He stated that it is a miracle no one was hurt more seriously.