Slippery Slope

Israel Border Police officers beat and detained a 9-year-old boy from Hebron because he entered a closed military zone near a house from which settlers were recently evicted.  A medical examination determined that the boy suffered from wounds to his throat and had bruises on his back and chest. (Haaretz)

(Hebrew - Haaretz)

Speaking at the Knesset plenum on Wednesday, Education Minister Gideon Sa’ar (Likud) announced that in light of the success of a pilot program of school trips to Hebron and the Cave of Patriarchs, it was his intention to expand the project to schools across the country.

Three Palestinians say they were attacked by a settler near the Cave of the Patriarchs in Hebron. The Palestinians turned to border police standing nearby for help. One Druze police officer attempted to arrest the attacker, but a group of settlers prevented this and helped the attacker escape. Following the disturbance the policemen finally arrested the Palestinians, banging the head of one of them against an iron door. The Palestinians were detained and they say they were also beaten on the way to the police station.

(Hebrew)

An IDF soldier has been sentenced to 10 days in detention after having been filmed throwing a stone at a Palestinian photographer for the B’Tselem human rights group in Hebron.

(Hebrew)

An Israeli citizen was killed and three more injured following an incident in which soldiers fired at an Israeli car in the South Hebron Hills.  Rabbi Dan Mertzbach was on his way to pray at the Cave of the Patriarchs when he was shot dead.  The soldiers signaled for the car to stop, and after Mr. Mertzbach failed to do so one of the soldiers fired eight bullets at him.  According to a senior source in the IDF’s Central Command, following the shooting the soldier ran towards the car and was hit by a Palestinian truck.  According to the IDF’s rules of engagement for the West Bank, shooting at a moving vehicle is forbidden.

Minister of Education, Gideon Saar, joined the students visit to the Cave of The Patriarchs as part of an educational program called Visits To The Land Of Our Forefathers. State School Branco Weiss in Beit Shemesh was the first school in the program, formulated by the Jerusalem District Administration and the Society and Youth Administration in the Ministry of Education. The program includes tours of Gush Etzion, arrival at Givat Hakrav Observation, and tours of the Cave of the Patriarchs and Museum Beit Hadassah in Hebron.

(Hebrew )

The Right wing activist, Itamar Ben-Gvir, was arrested tonight in the Cave of the Patriarchs (AKA Cave of Machpelah) in Hebron, after chasing two young Palestinians. Ben-Gvir claimed that they were carrying sticks.

(hebrew)

Deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon (Yisrael Beiteinu) announced that all new Foreign Ministry ambassadors and cadets will be required to visit the Cave of the Patriarchs and “Jewish heritage sites” on the West Bank. The ambassadors and cadets will be guided, amongst others, by settlers of Kiryat Arba.

(Hebrew)

The Minister of Education, Gideon Sa’ar, directed the Jerusalem department of the Ministry to examine the implementation of a pilot run for a program which would take students to visit the Cave of the Patriarchs in Hebron next school year.

(Hebrew)