GSS agents warn youths following fire bomb attack

Friday, August 17, 12:25 Following the fire bomb (Molotov cocktail) thrown yesterday (Thursday) at an Arab taxi in the area of K’far Etzion, today (Friday) the GSS gave warnings to right-wing activists – youths aged 13-18 – from Bat Ayin, Honenu reports.
Yesterday in the early evening hours a fire bomb was thrown at an Arab taxi on a the road between K’far Etzion and several hilltop communities. The taxi caught fire and the injured passengers were evacuated to hospital. According to Jewish residents of the area communities, rocks and fire bombs are frequently thrown at Jewish cars traveling on this particular section of road. Despite that there are those among the security forces who surmise that Jews threw the fire bomb.
Yesterday evening and very early this morning GSS agents arrived at Bat Ayin and other communities in the area in order to give right-wing activists warnings and apparently also to look for a lead in the case.
Yesterday evening, approximately one hour after the fire bomb was thrown, Yassam (Special Police) forces arrived at Bat Ayin. In one of the public parks an end of year party was being held for the graduating class of the Kiryat Arba High School Yeshiva. The Yassam policemen demanded that all of the students present their ID cards. When they reached one of the students the Yassam officer on site said that he recognized the youth. The policemen left and after several minutes border policemen and demanded that the youth come with them. The youth left with the policemen who lead him to a man in civilian clothes who presented himself as a GSS agent. After the youth consulted Honenu and after the GSS agent threatened to detain him if he didn’t speak with him, the youth agreed to speak.
According to the youth the GSS agent told him that they know he wants to enlist and that they are willing to ignore his activism in the illegal outposts. The GSS agent continued and said that it wasn’t a good idea for a youth to be involved with illegal activities. “You’re playing with fire,” the GSS agent concluded the conversation.
At 3:00 A.M. border police forces and GSS agents returned to Bat Ayin. First they went to the homes of two youths under house arrest in order to check if they were at home. The forces banged on the doors of the houses and woke up all of the residents. The youths were indeed at home and the GSS agents used the opportunity to warn them about involvement with illegal activities. One of the youths was told that he had been seen in the area in which the fire bomb was thrown, a short time before it was thrown. The forces left the homes of the youths without detaining them.
From there the forces continued on to the homes of three youths aged 13-14. The residents of those houses were also woken up at an early hour. The youths had been detained two weeks previously during Shabbat at the Ramat Migron outpost. Today (Friday) the youths received warnings from the GSS agents. In the conversation the GSS agents warned them not to be involved with any illegal activities. “We’re keeping a close watch on you,” and “We know exactly what you are doing,” were among the warnings given to the youths.
Sources in Yehuda and Shomron have expressed their great amazement at the “efficiency” – as they define it – of the security forces. “Fire bomb and rock attacks are part of the daily routine of the Jewish residents driving on the roads in this area and we have yet to hear of such speed and efficiency on the part of the security forces in the treatment of such cases. But here, when there’s only a slight chance that Jews carried out the act, we see how everyone, from the Prime Minister and his ministers to the top-ranking GSS agents and the police to the last of the border policemen, all of them are ready and determined to ‘Do everything to bring those responsible to justice,’ in the words of the Prime Minister.