A 70-year-old Arab man, a resident of the eastern capital, who assisted in extricating a chareidi man who entered PA-occupied Hebron a few days ago, was subjected to threats and humiliation from an IDF officer who was on the scene, Yediot Achronot is reporting. The Jewish man found himself in the Abu Snenah area of Hebron, under total PA control, an area off limits to Jews.

The Arab man, Adris Zahadi, last erev Shabbos realized the young chareidi man was lost, and as the PA (Palestine Authority) residents began encircling him, he immediately called for IDF soldiers to assist, to extricate the Jewish man from the area.

“I was attending the funeral of my nephew when I learned what was taking place. I dropped everything and headed over to there. I saw a chareidi man sitting on a chair, trembling with fear and surrounded by people. I spoke to him in Hebrew and I said to him, ‘Do not be afraid, you are my responsibility now,’” he told Yediot Achronot. “I warned all those present not to approach him and not lay a hand on him. I held his hand and took him with me”, Adris added.

Adris escorted the young chareidi man as he was speaking with Israel Police, working to get him safely out of the PA autonomous area. “I told them [police] that I must return to the funeral but if I leave the Israeli, he will be attacked immediately”.

He explains that a short time later, two vehicles arrived, and two border police officers got out, as did an IDF officer. The officer began to wave his weapon threateningly and shout at Zahadi to leave. “He screamed at me and said, ‘Get out of here, go now!’, With the weapon aimed at me, and all the people who were next to me ran away when they saw what he was doing, I was in shock, I did not understand why he was doing this. I did a favor, and this is what I get in return? What do I deserve this?” Zahadi questions.

“Everyone around me laughed at me and said, ‘Look what you got instead of being thanked,'” he says, “what did this officer actually show everyone there? He made it clear to them that if they found themselves in a similar situation, it is preferable not to get involved and leave the Israeli to get hurt or die.”

The IDF Spokesperson’s Office said in response: “Last Friday a report was received about the entry of an Israeli citizen into the Abu Snenah neighborhood of Hebron. An IDF force and a Border Police force nearby were immediately dispatched to rescue him. At this point, the citizen was surrounded by dozens of local Palestinians, one of whom was holding him. An IDF officer present at the incident feared that the civilian was in danger, pushed the Palestinian who was holding him and shouted at the crowd around him.

“In retrospect, it turned out that the Palestinian who held the Israeli citizen was a local resident who protected him from the uproar and led him towards the forces. The commanders apologized to the Palestinian for his misunderstanding and thanked him for his assistance in rescuing the civilian.”

(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)