The Samaria Brigade under the command of Col. Shimon Sisu on Friday morning, on the eve of Simchat Torah, blocked a main road in Samaria that passes through the Palestinian Authority (PA) town of Huwara, to allow the PA to hold a funeral for a terrorist who tried to murder the Steiner family on Thursday and was killed by IDF forces.
An IDF spokesman said, "According to the assessment of the situation, the Huwara road is temporarily closed to traffic for several hours. This is in order to enable the deployment of IDF forces in the region and to maintain the security of the residents."
The funeral is being conducted with military honors and an escort provided by PA security forces.
The Torat Lehima organization commented on the IDF's move, saying: "The Huwara road was blocked to Jews for the benefit of a military escort on behalf of the Palestinian Authority, for a terrorist who tried to murder Jews there yesterday and was killed by our forces."
"[Yoav] Gallant is not the Minister of Defense, he is the Minister of Oslo. And where is the Prime Minister? This is an absurdity and madness that only indicates the deep fracture in the consciousness of the heads of the security establishment.''
Social media messages circulated in Samaria communities called for residents to break through the IDF roadblock.
PA Arabs in the area rioted during the closure and burned tires on the main road. The Red Crescent reported that Israeli security forces have positioned snipers on rooftops in the town, and that 51 PA Arabs have so far been injured by tear gas, flashbangs, rubber pullets, and live fire used to disperse the crowd.