Two soldiers suspected of placing fake bomb on bus

Two Israeli soldiers from an infantry regiment were arrested on Monday on suspicion of placing a fake bomb on a Jerusalem bus last week, Israeli police said.

The two soldiers are religious Jews and belong to the Nahal Haredi unit.  They used their uniform to smuggle a bag with the device in it  into the central station complex.

The fake bomb appeared to be a protest against the disengagement plan, as there was a note saying, “The disengagement will blow up in our faces’ attached to the gas canister that was attached to electrical cables and a clock.

The fake bomb raised serious concerns among Israeli officials who harshly criticised the act, accusing the perpetrators of crossing the limits and emphasising that there are many other ways to protest disengagement.

Settlers are organizing a massive action which  would be the biggest anti-disengagement protest ever if it happens on the scale the settlers are expecting.

Settlers’ leaders are attempting to convince some 100,000 people to join the march to Gush Katif .  The government will deploy at least 20,000 soldiers to deal with the issue.