Instead of searching for the kidnappers of Eyal Yifrah, Gil-Ad Shayer and Naftali Frenkel, police spent Saturday night arresting Jewish teenagers suspected of throwing stones at Arab cars near the Haredi town of Beitar Ilit..
Police asked for the court to extend their remand, but the underage suspects were released by the court.
The incident stemmed from a spontaneous demonstration by Beitar Ilit residents near the entrance to the town. According to police reports, several teenagers threw rocks at Arab cars to protest the abduction.
During the demonstration, police arrested two youths, aged 14 and 16. David Halevi, an attorney appointed by the Honenu legal aid organization to represent the suspects, said the police had little evidence that the detainees threw the stones because so many people had been at the demonstration.
“We believe the police moved quickly to arrest somebody despite the fact that the evidence against the kids is weak, if there was any evidence at all,” Halevi said.