Israeli police in the West Bank arrested a 32-year-old settler suspected of throwing stones, on Friday at night, at an Israeli army officer and his family at the Western Wall area in Jerusalem.
Major General Eleazar Stern, head of the Personnel Directorate at the Israeli army, was surrounded by a group of settlers who yelled insults at him and his family while attempting to bar them from reaching the Wall area.
The settlers hurled stones and other objects at Stern and his family, Israeli online daily reported.
The main suspect behind the attack, a resident if Yitzhar settlement, said that he knew the police were looking for him.
The Israeli police believe that the attack was motivated by Stern’s role during the implementation of the disengagement plan, and his repeated statements which denounced calls by Rabbis for the soldiers to reject the evacuation orders.
Israeli Prime Minister, Ariel Sharon, phoned Stern and expressed his “shock” over the attack. Sharon’s office released a statement denouncing the attack.
Also, Lieutenant Dan Hallutz, the Israeli army Chief of Staff condemned the attack during an interview with the Israeli Radio.
