Israeli security forces on Sunday arrested a settler said to be the ringleader of the mob that tried to lynch a Palestinian youth at Muasi beach in the Gaza Strip last Wednesday.
The suspect, a resident of a West Bank settlement, was arrested in Jerusalem.
Even though all the assailants were identified in widely published footage, and despite harsh and loud criticisms of their behavior, the arrest on Sunday, more than four days following the attempted lynching, was the first in the case.
Video crews taped several Jewish youths beating a Palestinian with large rocks during the evacuation of Jewish right-wing activists who had illegally occupied a Palestinian house at Muasi beach.
In the videos Jewish youths are heard shouting ‘lynch him, lynch him’, and seen throwing stones at him. The Palestinian took a few direct blows to the head and lost consciousness. Although nearby soldiers looked on without intervening when the attack began, the victim’s life was saved thanks to a few soldiers and journalists who eventually took him to safety.
