Bedouin suspected of damaging property after police raid

Israel Police officers arrested two Bedouin men Saturday on suspicion of entering the Jewish community of Giv’ot Bar, north of Beersheva, and setting vehicles on fire, the police said.

They were detained after the Israel Security Agency (Shin Bet), the body responsible for internal security and counter-terrorism, got involved in the investigation, Israeli broadcaster Channel 12 reported.

“During the night, officers from the Rahat police station and fighters from the [police’s elite] Sahar Brigade operated in the village of Tarabin [aka Tirabin al-Sana] as part of the ‘New Order’ operation initiated by the [national security] minister and the police commissioner, to arrest suspects involved in violent incidents and the use of stolen military weapons,” the police said, referring to criminal activities besetting the Bedouin sector in the Negev.

“At the conclusion of the operation, and allegedly in response to it, two suspects who are residents of the village went out to carry out acts of retaliation in nearby Jewish communities, during which dozens of vehicles were damaged,” the police statement continued.

Residents of Giv’ot Bar told Channel 12 that the suspects set vehicles on fire and shattered windshields of others around 1 a.m. Two girls spotted a suspect hurling a rock and shouting in Arabic, after which he ran away toward the security fence, Channel 12 reported.

A similar incident reportedly occurred in the nearby Kibbutz Mishmar HaNegev. Damage was inflicted on 10 vehicles, the report said.

Giv’ot Bar and Mishmar HaNegev are the closest Jewish communities to Tarabin, located about 7.5 miles north of Beersheva.

The Israel Police said that during the raid in Tarabin overnight Thursday, dozens of officers from the Rahat station and the Sahar Brigade arrested five suspects, with a police officer sustaining a light injury in the process.

Following the alleged retaliations, the Lehavim Regional Council told residents in a statement: “Last night, several incidents of vehicular arson and smashed car windows occurred in Giv’ot Bar and Kibbutz Mishmar HaNegev. Upon receiving the reports, security forces and police operated at the scene.

“This morning, a situation assessment was held by the head of the council, the commander of the Rahat police station, the community police officer and a representative of the Border Police force, at the conclusion of which it was decided to raise the alert level in the community and reinforce the security array. The council is operating in full coordination with the security authorities and will continue to update residents as required,” the statement said.