Escalating violence
July 3, 2014
News of Mohammed Abu Khdeir's death spread quickly. Near his family home in the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Shuafat, the anger and grief of Palestinian youths erupted early on Wednesday (02.07.2014). Some hurled stones, as Israeli police officers repelled protesters with tear gas and rubber bullets. At 9 a.m., Israeli security forces had already cordoned off the area, and clashes continued until late in the evening.
Abu Khdeir, 17, disappeared from Shuafat in the early hours of Wednesday morning. At around 4 a.m. local time, police were notified that a young man had been forcibly dragged into a car. According to Palestinian media, the abduction was recorded by a video camera. A few hours later, a boy's burned body was found in West Jerusalem.
'Act of revenge'
Despite ongoing investigations, for many in Shuafat the motive was already clear early on: It was an act of revenge by Jewish extremists, who were looking to avenge the death of three murdered Israeli youths.
"Where is Netanyahu now, when something like this happens," said an angry Palestinian passer-by, observing the protests just a few meters away. Others seemed almost in shock that such a thing could even happen.
In the afternoon, Abu Khdeir's family said that DNA evidence had confirmed that the body was that of their son. His father was briefly detained for questioning before the police ruled him out. Late Wednesday evening, the Israeli news website "Times of Israel" reported that there was increasing evidence that the killing had a nationalistic background.
Fear of retaliation grows
The killing comes just two days after the discovery of the bodies of three Jewish teenagers kidnapped in the West Bank. Concern is growing in Israel that extremist Jews may have now acted in retaliation; the mood of the country has become increasingly heated. "In the last 24 hours, a Facebook page calling for revenge for the slain youths has received tens of thousands of likes," wrote Chemi Shalev, a columnist with the Israeli daily Haaretz.
But it's not just online where tensions are running high. On Tuesday evening, young Jewish extremists ran through the center of West Jerusalem chanting "Death to Arabs!" and "We want revenge!", in several instances attacking Arab passers-by. Israeli police had to protect Palestinians from attacks. Again on Wednesday evening, several groups of young extremist Israeli settlers gathered in the city center.
Netanyahu warns against vigilantism
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has urged all sides "not to take the law into their own hands," calling the act "a heinous crime" that should be investigated as soon as possible. Earlier, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas had called on Netanayhu to condemn the murder of Muhammed Abu Khdeir just as he had condemned the abduction and killing of the three young Israelis.
Even the families of the murdered Israeli teenagers denounced the death, calling it a "heinous act" if the "Arab boy had been murdered for nationalistic reasons."
Security Cabinet meets again
On Wednesday evening, Netanyahu called his security cabinet together for an emergency meeting in Tel Aviv - the third such meeting this week - to discuss the situation and the response to the murders of the three Israeli teenagers: Naftali Fraenkel (16), Gilad Shaar (16) and Eyal Yifrah (19). On Tuesday, Netanyahu had said that the aim was to try and further weaken Hamas in the West Bank, continue to act against Hamas in Gaza and find the kidnappers and their co-conspirators.
In Shuafat, Palestinians are now looking to see if the Israeli police can find those responsible for the murder of Mohammed Abu Khdeir. Until that happens, the situation will likely remain tense.