If they were PALESTINIAN they would be D E A D

4 Israelis beat IDF soldier, break through West Bank checkpoint

_{By Jonathan Lis, Haaretz Correspondent}

Four Israelis were arrested Wednesday after attacking an Israel Defense Forces soldier and breaking through a West Bank checkpoint in an effort to reach the area of the evacuated Sa-Nur settlement. The men were arrested after soldiers fired warning shots in the air.

The four, ranging in age from 19-27, include two former Sa-Nur residents, reached the checkpoint and told told the soldiers that they want to visit the former settlement of Sa-Nur. Since the evacuation of the settlement as part of the disengagement plan last summer, the former settlement was designated by GOC Central Command as a closed military zone.

After the troops informed the men that they could not pass the checkpoint, they got out of their cars, beat one of the soldiers, and continued driving. Only after soldiers fired in the air did the men stop. The four were arrested and their remand will be extended on Thursday.

In recent weeks, police officers have faced a number of incidents in which individuals who resided in the evacuated settlements of Homesh and Sa-Nur have tried to reach the areas to mark one year since the evacuation of the settlements. In recent weeks, a number of small groups have evaded soldiers and police officers and found alternate routes to the former settlements.

Police sources regarded the attempts at reaching Homesh and Sa-Nur with severity.

"Whoever enters those areas is endangering himself," a police officer said, noting that Wednesday's incident was the most severe thus far.