Israeli settlers claim Arabs attempted to 'lynch' them during morning run in Hebron area
Police give different version of events, saying residents of village of Tuani became nervous after seeing two Israelis running in their village with a dog in a suspicious manner.
By JPOST.COM STAFFPalestinians walk on a dirt road near the West Bank Jewish settlement of Maon, south of Hebron May 19, 2014(photo credit: REUTERS)
A couple from the Avihayil settlement claimed they were the subject of an attempted "lynch" on Monday during their morning run on the outskirts of the Palestinian village of Tuani in Southern Hebron.During their run, they say they encountered several Arabs who stopped the couple and questioned them about their presence in the village.According to the couple, when they replied that they were just on their morning run in the area- something they frequently do, the group of Arabs advanced upon them, circled around them, threatened to kill them and threw rocks at them.The Police spokesman, however, gave a different version of events.According to the police, the residents of Tuani became nervous after seeing two Israelis running in their village with a dog in a suspicious manner.The residents, along with Operation Dove, an Italian peace organization, reported that the residents began to scream at them to leave the village and threw rocks at them with the single intention of forcing them to exit the village.According to police, only after the villagers' suspicions were aroused by the running settlers, did they respond in such a fashion.The village of Tuani is known for its peaceful relations with the surrounding Jewish communities and is often frequented by Jews without any problems, police said.IDF security forces as well as the police arrived on the scene to diffuse the situation.