Israel Police have detained a 15-year-old girl on suspicion of carrying out a racially-motivated attack on a woman on a bus in central Israel.
The girl is suspected of cursing at the woman and throwing socks at her,
At the conclusion of her questioning, the girl was released under restrictive conditions.
In the disturbing incident, H., a young Druze woman from northern Israel, was accosted by a group of teenagers sitting behind her on the bus after speaking Arabic on the phone.
In a Sunday interview with Channel 12 News, she recounted, "Not even two minutes had passed when a friend called me, and I started speaking to him in Arabic, as usual. Then I felt something on my head. I looked and saw socks."
"About eight times, the teenagers simply threw their socks at my head, laughed at me, and filmed me."
According to Channel 12, H. comes from a Druze family in northern Israel, many of whose members have served or continue to serve in significant positions in Israel's security establishment. Her father is a senior reserve officer, and her brother is currently serving in a significant role. She recently completed her psychology studies and spent the past year volunteering to care for animals evacuated from southern Israel following the October 7 massacre.
H. currently works as a research assistant on the "Bayit Balev" (Home in the Heart) project, which focuses on strengthening the psychological resilience of families, reservists, and evacuees affected by the war.
"Just look at what I do and the people I work with. It's simply absurd," she said.
H. also told Channel 12 that she she called her father immediately after the incident and told him what had happened, adding, "He simply couldn't believe it. He was in shock."
Other members of her extended family subsequently learned of the incident and contacted her out of concern.
Following the incident, H. and her family filed a police complaint. She admitted, "I went to file a complaint, but I arrived at the police station expecting them to do nothing."
According to H., the incident undermined her sense of security when using public transportation, and she now fears finding herself in a similar situation again. She also noted that none of the other passengers on the bus came to her assistance during the incident.
Police in the Dan District launched an investigation into the case, Channel 12 said.