Arab middle school students were attacked by a group of Jewish yeshiva students during a school trip to the Jordan Valley region on Wednesday, according to Walla.
According to Kamal Abu Younis, principal of Ibn Khaldun Elementary School in Sakhnin, a group of yeshiva students spat on the Sakhnin students, sprayed tear gas and pepper spray, and beat them.
The group consisted of 36 middle school students and four teachers. Following the incident, which occured at the Ein Shokek park outside Beit She'an, 13 students were evacuated to Emek Medical Center, according to N12 News.
Beit She'an police arrived at the scene and arrested one of the Sakhnin teachers as well as three of the attackers, according to Walla.
The students who were not injured were immediately sent home, according to Abu Younis, who added that those students also received psychological help from the school counselors.
'It's hard for me to repeat those words'
"The [yeshiva students] said things like 'stinking Arabs, dirty Arabs,'" Abu Younis said. "It's hard for me to repeat those words...Our eighth-grade students are excellent in every way."
The Education Ministry responded to the incident on Wednesday, asserting that the attack on students and teachers during an educational trip was wholly unacceptable.
The ministry added that it is monitoring the incident closely to ensure that all students and staff involved receive appropriate emotional and educational support. It also said that a police investigation into the incident is ongoing.
Israeli Arabs report not feeling safe in Israel
This attack comes amid a sharp rise in Arab sector crime, and a broad sentiment among Israeli Arabs that Israel is not the safest place for them.
In a survey published in January, the Israeli Democracy Institute reported that about one-third of Israeli-Arabs said it was safer for Arabs to live in Israel, while others felt it was safer abroad or saw little difference. Pollsters suggested that differing experiences with security and everyday crime may impact this gap.
Eli Ashkenazi/Walla and Joanie Marguiles contributed to this report.