6 Israelis Arrested For Racist Attacks On Arabs Who Dated Jews
JERUSALEM (JTA) — Six Israelis from the southern city of Beersheba were arrested for violent attacks on Arabs whom they suspected of engaging in romantic relationships with Jews.
The agency, known as the Shin Bet, announced the arrests on Sunday. It did not say when the arrests took place.
Among those arrested were a minor, who cannot be named, and two soldiers.
The attacks, which have been taking place since December, were carried out with weapons including knives, metal batons and crowbars, the Shin Bet said in a statement.
The motives of the attacks, according to the Shin Bet, were nationalistic and racist, including preventing relationships between Jews and Arabs.
Attorneys for the arrested men claim that their clients have been tortured in prison and one of those arrested tried to kill himself during the interrogations.
The men have been indicted on several charges, including committing acts of terror.
A message from our Publisher & CEO Rachel Fishman Feddersen
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism so that we can be prepared for whatever news 2025 brings.
At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and polarized discourse.
Readers like you make it all possible. Support our work by becoming a Forward Member and connect with our journalism and your community.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO