British activist remains in Israeli custody over suspected minor assault during West Bank clash

Finn Joughin was detained Saturday after an encounter involving a child in Umm al-Kheir. Police said late Saturday that he was being held “on suspicion of performing an indecent act against a minor.”

A British activist remained in Israeli police custody Sunday on suspicion of indecently assaulting a minor during an incident in the southern West Bank village of Umm al-Kheir, where the activist said he had been trying to protect a Palestinian from violence. 

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Finn Joughin was detained Saturday after an encounter involving a child in Umm al-Kheir. Police said late Saturday that he was being held “on suspicion of performing an indecent act against a minor.”

Video from the incident shows Joughin gripping a fence while pressing his body against a child, apparently to prevent the child from passing through. Joughin had been volunteering in the village in what was described as an effort to protect Palestinians from settler attacks.

Representatives of a left-wing activist group said Joughin had been “kidnapped,” describing the confrontation as stemming from a dispute after Israeli settler children allegedly took a ball from Palestinians.

Additional footage showed a Hebrew-speaking man calling Joughin an anarchist and a pedophile. The man identified the children shown in the video as residents of Barkan, described as an illegal outpost in the Umm al-Kheir area.

British national Joughin remains in custody

Police confirmed Sunday, in response to a request from The Times of Israel, that Joughin remained in custody as the investigation continued. The British national was questioned, and investigators collected testimony concerning the allegations against him, police said. 

This interrogation “included, among others, the taking of testimonies that indicated a suspicion of a case of assaulting a minor,” police said. “The suspect was arrested at the end of his interrogation, and the investigation of the case is ongoing.”

Saturday’s violence also prompted condemnation from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who denounced what he called “criminal violence.”