Police release photos of masked men wrecking Peki'in home

Police released photos yesterday showing several masked men from the Druze town of Peki'in destroying Jewish-owned property during the violent clashes that occurred there Tuesday.

Dozens were injured in the clashes in the Galilee town, including three people who sustained injuries after police shot them using live rounds.

Sources in the police's Northern District said the images caught by security cameras refute the claims that the police were responsible for the clashes. The Druze municipal heads forum, meanwhile, demanded the formation of a committee of inquiry headed by a judge to review the events.

Hurfeish Mayor Rakad Khir a-Din reacted to the release of the photos by saying that the public is facing "a conscious decision by the police to lie and misrepresent the facts, aimed to shield the senior officers who are responsible for this failure of an operation."

The members of the forum stated their demand in a letter they sent to Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and President Shimon Peres. "This is a group of thugs who have been embittering the lives of the residents of the Peki'in Hahadasha neighborhood. The cellular antenna story was only a catalyst," a source said.

The images released by police show masked men arriving at a Jewish family's house after police left the village. A woman is seen hanging laundry out to dry in her backyard as the group arrives and starts destroying property.

Police Commissioner David Cohen said Wednesday he would appoint a committee of inquiry to investigate the clash. Cohen announced he would appoint the committee after Druze leaders and Arab MKs accused the police of brutality and demanded an inquiry into the police's conduct. Some 27 police officers were among the wounded.