The Israeli civilians present at a clash with Israeli forces on Friday night deny the allegations of the IDF spokesperson regarding violence, an attempted vehicle ramming, strangling, and stone-throwing against Israeli forces, and have published testimonials and footage to support their claims.
They note that the incident began near the entrance of the Shabbat, then a Border Police force, which was in the homestead evacuated earlier in the day, left the area. The residents, who planned to return only after the Shabbat, received reports that Palestinian Arabs planned to burn the homestead and returned to the area near the beginning of the Shabbat.
Around 22:00, a vehicle with lights off approached them. The Israelis believed it to be a Palestinian vehicle and drove their vehicle toward it.
The approaching vehicle was the sector commander's jeep. The commander turned on his lights, got out, and started shooting live ammunition over the heads of the civilians, yelling at them in Hebrew to lie on the ground.
The boys raised their hands and lay on the ground, while the commander continued to aim his loaded weapon and laser marker at them. When one of the boys began to film the event, the commander stopped him and threatened the civilian with violence. Thereafter, the commander ceased the live shooting and switched to firing stun grenades from a launcher - one of which was directly aimed at the vehicle's windshield, while threatening, "I will kill you all".
The commander was later documented threatening again in a phone call that "he would kill them all" if the Border Police were not brought to arrest the civilians.
The locals emphasize that, throughout the incident, no physical violence was carried out by the residents, who did not even resist the arrest. Moreover, one of the residents is even documented calming another resident who was handcuffed behind his back, telling him: "Do not quarrel with them. They want you to quarrel with them, we will just film everything."
Hearing reports of gunfire directed at the Israelis, injured people at the homestead, and fear of a life-threatening situation, rescue forces, residents of nearby farms, and additional citizens were called to the scene, who also encountered an indiscriminate volley of gas and stun grenades.
A teenager who was injured in his upper body and suffered gunshot injuries and lung damage. He was treated on the scene by United Hatzalah medics who provided him with first aid. A Magen David Adom intensive care ambulance evacuated the boy to Hadassah Mount Scopus hospital.
The police arrested the United Hatzalah medic and another civilian who assisted in his evacuation. The two were released after interrogation.
"Despite the fact that there was a 14-year-old boy severely injured by the soldiers' gunfire, the IDF spokesperson refrained throughout the Shabbat from mentioning this fact in all the messages and briefings released", claim the civilians.
The Chief of Staff, Defense Minister, and Prime Minister have all denounced the civilians involved in the incident and demanded that law enforcement take action against those who attacked Israeli forces.