Palestinian Cars Vandalized in East Jerusalem
Unknown attackers vandalized Palestinian cars in east Jerusalem early on Monday, slashing tires and spraying pro-settler Hebrew graffiti on the vehicles, in the latest apparent hate crime, Israeli police said.
Police spokeswoman Luba Samri said the incident took place in the Shuafat neighborhood of east Jerusalem, and that nine cars were affected.
She said the attack appeared to be a "price-tag" incident, in which Jewish right-wing activists target Palestinian homes and property in protest over Israeli government moves against the settlements.
The name of the Ulpana settlement outpost, where the Israeli government plans to remove five buildings to comply with a court order, was scrawled on one of the cars.
Samri said police were investigating the incident, which was caught on private CCTV footage seen by AFP.
The footage, which was handed to police, shows two youths with their faces covered, one of them wearing a Jewish skullcap, stabbing the tires of nine cars during a 15-minute period.
A dog begins barking at them, awakening a neighbor and causing the attackers to flee, apparently in the direction of the nearby settlement neighborhood of Ramat Shlomo.
"Price tag" is a euphemism for revenge hate crimes by Israeli extremists, which normally target Palestinians and Arabs, but have also been directed at left-wing Israeli activists and the army.
The attacks tend to involve the vandalism or destruction of Palestinian property and have included multiple arson attacks on cars and mosques.
The perpetrators are rarely caught, although in recent months the security forces have increased efforts to clamp down on the phenomenon after an attack on an army base last year.
Source: Agence France Presse
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