NOVANEWS
Zio-Nazi police have arrested a suspect in the arson attack on a mosque in northern IsraHell, a spokesman said after a gag order on details of his detention was lifted.
The suspect, who was arrested on Monday just hours after the attack, appeared before a district court for a remand hearing on Thursday, police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said, without giving any details about his identity or place of residence.
Photos of the suspect outside the court showed a young man in casual clothing, with long sidelocks and glasses, wearing a large white crocheted skullcap.
Earlier in the day, police arrested seven more people suspected of joining violent protests in Tuba Zangaria village in the northern Galilee region, which erupted just hours after the arson attack was discovered on Monday morning.
“We arrested another seven people suspected of taking part in the demonstrations, which raises to 25 the total number of people being investigated over the incidents,” Rosenfeld said.
Angry Bedouin youths have been demonstrating since the attack, throwing stones at police and torching public buildings, including the local council building, a health clinic and a cultural centre.
The attack, which sparked a wave of international condemnation, is believed to be the work of Jewish extremists. The investigation, which is being conducted by the Shin Bet internal security agency, is largely under a gag order.
The mosque was badly damaged by fire with the perpetrators scrawling the words “tag” and “revenge” on the walls, in what police described as “a very severe price tag incident” – a term which usually refers to acts of vengeance against Palestinians and their property by Jewish settlers in the West Bank.
Although such acts normally occur in the West Bank, a similar attack targeted another mosque in Ibtin village in Galilee last year.
The desecration of the mosque was condemned by top Israeli political and religious figures and also sparked angry protests among village residents, who clashed with police.
Tuba Zangaria is located just seven kilometres from the northern town of Safed, where a local rabbi last year sparked outrage after calling on Jews to avoid renting or selling property to Arabs.