Near-Lynch: Jew Accused of Killing; Body Not Produced

by Hillel Fendel
March 4, 2008

(file)

Though a Jew living in southern Shomron was interrogated, and later released, by police for killing an Arab who tried to murder him, there is no proof that anyone was killed at all.

The incident in question occurred on Monday morning, when a resident of Nachliel was attacked by a mob of several dozen rock-throwing Arabs near Neriah. The attack was well-planned; two other mobs were on their way at the same time to other nearby locations, and one succeeded in partially tearing down an army observation point and planting Hamas and Hizbullah flags there. The besieged man, named Moshe, shot first in the air, then at his attackers' legs, but the mob continued to advance and attack him with rocks and the like. He then took refuge in a bus that happened to come on the scene, and, as more vehicles appeared on the scene, the Arabs proceeded to flee.

Eyewitnesses later said that the road was filled with blocks, rocks and bricks, and that it was evident that Moshe could easily have been lynched.

Following an initial army investigation, the commander of the IDF's Binyamin Brigade found that Moshe had acted properly. The case was then transferred to Israel Police, which also questioned and released him - though he is banned from discussing the incident in public or from leaving Israel.

No Body, No Proof of Death

The mayor of Nachliel, Eli Mergel, told Arutz-7's Hebrew newsmagazine on Tuesday that "with all the talk of killing in self-defense," the Arabs have produced no proof that anyone was killed.

"As the Arabs were running away," Mergel said, "Moshe saw nothing indicating that his bullets had hit anyone... Only 40 minutes later, information arrived that an Arab had been hit. But there is no body, no bullets or bullet casings, and no proof that Moshe shot anyone."

"The area that the Arabs entered yesterday is [under Israeli military control and] permitted only to Jews," Mergel noted. "The Arabs are permitted to enter only for olive-harvests, and they must have an escort. They came there yesterday only to kill Jews. Thankfully, they came upon Moshe, a soldier in an elite unit and someone who knew how to use his weapon effectively and legally."

Moshe arrived in Nachliel this year as part of a group from Kollel Meretz in Mevaseret Zion to bolster the town's social and religious fabric. Mergel said that the project has been very successful, and that additional families will join them this summer.