Two soldiers and a teenager attacked in Pardess Hanna for looking like Arabs

Two off-duty soldiers and a teenage civilian were beaten Friday night in a public park in Pardess Hanna by a group of youths, reportedly because they mistook them for being Arabs.

According to a report by Israel Radio, the two soldiers, who are from the Golani and Kfir Brigades and live in the nearby town of Rosh Ha’ayin, were sitting in a park with a young woman and a 17-year-old male when a group of seven young men attacked them.

The assailants reportedly beat the soldiers with a hookah pipe and other blunt objects. The victims were treated at Hadera’s Hillel Yaffe Medical Center for injuries, including to their face, before being released.

According to Israel Radio, the soldiers were too scared to call the police following the incident, and it was only after the father of one of the soldiers learned his son was in the hospital that the police got involved and opened an investigation.

Police spokeswoman Luba Samri told The Jerusalem Post on Sunday that, based on the victims’ statements, they believe that the attackers are Jewish, but that the entire incident is under investigation, including the motive for the assault.

“Soldiers go on vacation and are attacked by criminals just because they look like Arabs. It’s a disgrace,” Ynet news quoted the father as saying. “They [almost] lynched them, it could have ended in death. How did we stoop so low? And even if they were Arabs, [does this mean] we should harm them? We are shocked and demand that the lawbreakers be brought to justice.”