NABLUS, West Bank, July 2 (UPI) -- Riots erupted in East Jerusalem and in the West Bank Wednesday after rumors spread that a dead Palestinian teenager was lynched by Jewish vigilantes in response to the killing of three Israeli teenagers.
Less than one day after tens of thousands of Israelis mourned at the funerals of Naftali Fraenkel, Eyal Yifrach and Gilad Shaer, police found the body of Palestinian teenager Muhammed Hussein Abu Khdeir after receiving a call about a kidnapping.
Within hours, Palestinian protesters and Israeli police engaged in violent clashes after Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas publicly accused Jewish settlers of killing the 16-year-old and faulted the Israeli government.
"Israel is a state of law and everyone is obligated to act in accordance with the law," said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu after calling for an immediate investigation into Abu Khdeir's death and urging citizens not to engage in vigilantism.
