Jerusalem: Two Italians were recently arrested by the Israeli forces after the painted a giant mural of a Palestinian teenager on the separation wall in the occupied West Bank.
The four-meter (13 foot) painting was drawn on a wall near Bethlehem in the West Bank. The giant painting of Ahed Tamimi, 17, was drawn after she was released on Sunday after her arrest for slapping two Israeli soldiers and sentence of eight months prison sentence.
The two Italians and a Palestinian were arrested on Saturday “on suspicion of damaging and vandalizing the security fence in the Bethlehem area.”
The three men who were arrested “illegally drew on the wall, and when border policemen took action to arrest them, they tried to escape in their car, which was stopped by the forces,” the statement said.
One of the arrested men is identified as an Italian street artist Jorit Agoch. His Facebook post had a message under his name pleading for help.
Now following the help message on FB the Italian foreign ministry immediately responded that they are in contact with Israeli authorities and following the arrests “with great attention”.
The Ministry further added that an Italian consul and a lawyer had visited the two in the prison in Jerusalem on Saturday and offered “all possible assistance.”
Meanwhile just released from the Israeli prison Tamimi and her mother was also transported to their home village of Nabi Saleh.
Her villagers greeted Tamimi with huge applauds who see her as a symbol of resistance to Israeli occupation.
Among the arrested artist is also a Secretive British street artist Banksy.