German tourists attacked in Nablus after entering with Israeli car

Two German male tourists who entered the city of Nablus (biblical “Shechem”) in a car with Israeli license plates were attacked by a group of young Palestinian men, who began to throw stones at them and vandalize the car.

The two tourists were driving a Tel Aviv-Yafo Municipality ride-sharing vehicle, when it was surrounded by a group of young Arab men who began to pelt the car with stones. As the pair tried to escape, some of the attackers opened the car doors and attempted to drag the two men out.

The car eventually was inoperable and the two tourists managed to escaped on foot. An Arab Israeli helped them escape the city, and an Israel Defense Forces medic attended the two men for superficial injuries before the IDF escorted them back into Israeli territory.

“We just wanted to drink coffee,” the two tourists stated.

German Ambassador to Israel Steffen Seibert responded to the incident on social media.

“A mob attacking tourists because they don‘t like their license plate is disgusting and cowardly,” Seibert said. He also thanked the Israeli Arab individual who helped them, saying, “I thank the Palestinian Israeli citizen who saved them from the bottom of my heart.”

Both Palestinian and Israeli sources shared videos of the incident on various social media platforms, with some Palestinians initially claiming that the two were undercover Israeli operatives.

يبدو وحده خاصه...تم إكتشافها فى نابلس..شبان غاضبون هاجموا السياره ومن فيها قبل أن يتمكنوا من الهرب.

الإعلام العبرى يروج..
بأنهم سياح ألمان إستأجروا سيارة من تل أبيب ودخلوا بها إلى مدينة نابلس

وإن كان الأمر كذلك...بيستاهلوا...
دم شبابنا مش رخيص حتى يتهاونوا بهيك قصه.#هشامناجي pic.twitter.com/6jONFp0U8C

— 🇵🇸 ابو العز السوافيرى 🇵🇸 (@AboAlezswafery) March 18, 2023

Nablus has seen several IDF raids in recent weeks as part of Israel’s Operation Break the Wave counterterrorism efforts. Several Palestinian terror group members have engaged in firefights with the security forces conducting the raids and have been subsequently killed.