Shock in Yehuda/Shomron: police arrest man who shot terrorist in Arak Burin

Wednesday, June 15 20:15 During the early morning hours detectives from the Central Unit of the Yehuda and Shomron Police raided a home in Alon Shevut. The detectives refused to show the family a search or arrest warrant and despite that searched throughout the house and broke into a room in which two girls were sleeping, offending their modesty. According to the detectives they had an arrest warrant for one of the sons of the family, “M”, a 27 year old who lives in Jerusalem.
After they realized that “M” was not at his parents’ home, the detectives left the scene, called him and asked him to come to the police station. After approximately three hours the detectives returned to the parents’ home with a search warrant. The detectives confiscated “M”’s passport.
“M” reported for investigation at the offices of the Central Unit of the Yehuda and Shomron Police, where he discovered that he is accused of killing an Arab near the village of Arak Burin in the Shomron.
Approximately a year and a half ago Arabs from the village of Arak Burin reported that two Arabs that threw stones at a Jew had been shot near the village and one of them killed. From the video clip filmed by the security camera on the Sela guard post near the site and which was publicized by an IDF spokesperson, it appears that two Arabs wildly attacked a Jew hiking near the community of Har Bracha in the Shomron. In the video clip one of the Arabs is seen throwing rocks at the hiker from a distance of several meters. The Jew fired into the air, however the Arab approached him while holding a rock. Simultaneously another Arab arrived holding rocks. When the hiker saw that the Arabs were approaching him he started to flee, but they chased him. After one of the Arabs threw a large rock at his back and grabbed him, the Jew shot at the Arab and fled the scene. According to the Arabs’ claim one of the Arabs was killed and the other injured. The shooter did not turn himself in to the police.
Immediately after the incident sources in the IDF and the police announced that it was an act of self defense, however despite this the police decided to invest much effort in catching the shooter.
During the past few months the Central Unit of the Yehuda and Shomron Police has made many arrests among the residents of Yehuda and Shomron and confiscated Glock pistols from several Shomron residents. However all of the detainees denied shooting and were released. Also their pistols did not match the ballistics tests.
This morning “M” was investigated on suspicion of manslaughter and submitted his version of the incident, according to which it was a case of shooting in self defense.
The police informed attorney Ariel Atari, who is representing “M”, that tomorrow morning the police will ask the court to extend his remand for several additional days.
Attorney Ariel Atari responded to the remand and said that, “The Israeli police at the time announced that the shooting was clearly in self defense, as we see in the film documenting the incident and therefore the remand is difficult to understand and there is no justification for it.”
ׁHonenu, the organization assisting the detainees and interrogatees in the case of the Arak Burin shooting, reports that, “Almost every day we encounter incidents of soldiers and civilians in situations of distress due to the security situation. Unfortunately this isn’t the first time in which Jews who had been attacked were arrested and investigated, despite the fact that by all opinions they acted out in self defense.”
Knesset Member Dr. Michael Ben-Ari said that the arrest of a man who defended himself is illogical and constitutes a prize for terror. “Instead of giving a citation, they harass a man whose funeral we would have attended if he hadn’t shot.”