A joint investigation by Israel Police, the Shin Bet and the Yamam Border Police unit has led on overnight Saturday to the arrest in El Birah of a suspect in the murder of 19-year-old Ori Ansbacher.
The suspect, Arafat Afariah, age 29, a resident of Hebron, was taken for interrogation by the Shin Bet. He is known to the security forces.
Security forces were able to identify him from forensic evidence from the murder site. They have the knife he used in custody. It was not on him when he was arrested.
Arab sources claim his clan is connected to Hamas.
Read: Jewish Teen Brutally Murdered in Jerusalem.
משפחת אנסבכר עודכנה כבר אמש במעצרו של הפלסטיני שחשוד ברצח אורי אנסבכר. החשוד נלכד במבצע כירורגי של השב"כ והימ"מ. לפי מקורות פלסטיניים, הוא הגיע מחמולה שמזוהה עם חמאס. כוחות הביטחון סבורים כי החשוד פעל לבדו pic.twitter.com/b9kLMSfH2C
— כאן חדשות (@kann_news)
Israel’s social media were full of rumors since Thursday’s discovery of the young victim’s body outside the Biblical Zoo in Jerusalem, and police have called on the public not to distribute information from unauthorized sources.
According to police, “various reports and reports have been published, especially in the social media, about the circumstances of the murder, including irresponsible horror stories. We wish to make it clear that these are groundless stories that harm both the dignity of the victim and the honor of the family while misleading the public.”
Prime Minister Netanyahu’ son, Yair, was one of the sources on Facebook of these gory details, which have since been taken down. There is now an official gag order on such descriptions.
National Union Chairman MK Bezalel Smotrich on Saturday night issued a statement under the heading, “The time has come to apply the death penalty to terrorists as permitted by law,” in response to the capture of the terrorist who had murdered Ori Ansbacher.
Smotrich said: “From the few details that are known, this sounds exactly like the case demanding the use of the death penalty for terrorists as is permitted by law. Beyond that, the defense establishment must exercise its full weight in order to convey a unified message that Jewish blood is not permitted. We must restore deterrence. The immediate expulsion of the [murderer’s] family and demolition of its home, closures, curfews and the revocation of work permits are a good start. This terrible murder must not be ignored.”
Former DM Avigdor Liberman tweeted Saturday morning: It is unthinkable that a 19-year-old girl is murdered over nationalistic motives and the lowly murderer continues to live for many years with the indulgent conditions of an Israeli prison. We must change this reality, the death penalty must be imposed on terrorists!”