A fire which broke out Thursday night in a study hall in Mitzpe Ziv in the southern Hebron hills is suspected to be arson.

The study hall, located near Maale Hever, was founded in memory of fallen IDF soldiers Yehuda Ben-Yosef and Yoav Doron, who were killed by friendly fire in 2003.

Yehuda Ben-Yosef’s father Baruch Ben-Yosef, together with residents of Maale Haver, arrived at the scene to show support and remained there throughout the night, holding the next morning’s prayers at the site as well.

According to Ben-Yosef, the damage is estimated at hundreds of thousands of shekels, and the fire investigator from the firefighting service has said that the blaze was arson.

Ben-Yosef, who is currently filing a complaint with Israel Police, said that the building has no electricity and that the possibility that the fire was caused by an electrical short has been ruled out.

“I have no doubt it was [set by] Arabs,” he emphasized.

MK Itamar Ben Gvir (Otzma Yehudit) said, “The police must investigate and deal with the incident like they deal with terror. This time it’s a building, but in the future it could end in death. We must not ignore [this] and bury our heads in the ground. This is a horrific incident.”

“I expect that the police will find the guilty parties and put them in jail,” he added.

Fire in Jewish town: 'No doubt it was set by Arabs'  https://amos37.com/fire-in-jewish-town-no-doubt-it-was-set-by-arabs/

Josh Toupos

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