A 14-year-old resident of Samaria is hospitalized at Schneider Children's Medical Center in Petah Tikva after he was wounded in a rock-throwing attack on Tuesday night.
The teen was in an induced coma and on a ventilator with serious wounds to his head, a broken skull, and internal bleeding. He was slated to undergo surgery early Wednesday afternoon.
Overnight Tuesday, the teen's condition went downhill, but on Wednesday morning he stabilized and was listed in moderate condition.
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From initial reports, the incident occurred when the teen was riding in a car on Purim Eve with a number of other Jewish residents of the area. The car stopped at a traffic roundabout on the road that leads to hilltop outposts, and the teen and his brother got out and started dancing to Purim music. According to reports from the Samaria Regional Council, a number of young Palestinians pulled up alongside them and began cursing and assaulting the teens. The fracas attracted more Palestinians, and the incident escalated.
Both the Israel Police and the IDF said it is unclear who began the fight and that damaged cars had been spotted throughout the Palestinian village of Hawara. Security forces also said the Jewish boys had been drunk.
Samaria Regional Council head Yossi Dagan called the attack "an attempted anti-Semitic murder, and a hate crime in every aspect."
Dagan said he had spoken with the teen's father and was urging the public to pray for his recovery.
"I've never seen an Arab stop in a Jewish area and get attacked with such murderous violence," Dagan said.
