Two 17-year-old Jewish youths were arrested on Thursday for allegedly stabbing an Arab man in Jerusalem early on Wednesday morning. The two are accused of attacking the man because he is Arab. Both have denied the charges.
The stabbing took place near the Meah Shearim neighborhood. The victim, 31-year-old Hamad Hamad, told police he had been attacked by a group of young men wearing kippot (yarmulkes). Hamad remains hospitalized in serious condition on Thursday.
Police said they are still searching for other suspects in the case. The identities of the captured suspects were not released because the two are minors.
While the attackers' motives are still unknown, the attack was widely assumed to be connected to an increase in violence immediately prior to the expulsion of Jews from the Peace House in Hevron. Arabs had carried out several violent attacks in the Hevron region, and just hours before the Jerusalem attack a 16-year-old Jewish youth was badly wounded in a rock attack near the Peace House.
Palestinian Authority Arabs living in the Hevron region claimed Thursday that Jews had violently attacked them following the forceful eviction from the Peace House on Thursday afternoon. Arabs accused Jews of burning Arab property and shooting two Arab men near Hevron. The charges have not been confirmed by a second source.