Five American Students Escape Palestinian Lynch Mob

Five American Orthodox-Jewish tourists mistakenly entered a Palestinian-controlled area in Hebron and immediately found their car being pelted by rocks and Molotov cocktails on Thursday.

The five entered the Jabel Johar neighborhood of Hebron—which is controlled by the Palestinian Authority—and immediately came under attack, as Palestinian attackers had plans to lynch the individuals, according to multiple reports. After their car was set ablaze by the Palestinian Molotov cocktail throwers, the tourists had to evacuate their vehicle, exposing themselves to the mob.

But luckily for the Americans, one brave Palestinian took the five Jewish men into his house to keep them safe from the mob while the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) were called to the scene to maintain order.

One of the tourists suffered several wounds to his face while two others were injured in the lynch attempt, according to Israel’s Hatzolah ambulance service. They are now in fair to good condition, according to Israeli authorities.

“Strictly speaking and in order of arrival, civilian security services arrived first on the scene and after that, the IDF. Riot police entered only after civilian personnel were on site, both those on shift and those on call, and many army forces who quickly asserted control over the situation,” an Israeli security official told Tazpit News Agency.

“Only after that did riot police arrive to rescue the Jewish tourists from the Arab home, and [then] took them to Kiryat Arba to receive medical treatment,” the official added.