Indictment filed against Be'er Sheva Deputy Mayor for assaulting employee while in uniform

An indictment has been filed against the Deputy Mayor of Be'er Sheva, Shimon Tobul, for assaulting a young Bedouin man at a gas station. The incident occurred in September 2024, when Tobul arrived at a station in Kfar Aza with his reserve unit.

According to the indictment, one of the employees, Maher Asra'a, was playing Arabic music at a high volume in his vehicle. Upon arrival, Tobul reportedly approached him and demanded he "turn off this garbage," subsequently attacking him and cocking his weapon. Security camera footage, exposed by ynet, shows Tobul confronting the young man, a resident of a Bedouin village in the Negev. After a bystander asked Tobul to intervene, he entered the store and demanded to know whose car was playing the music. When the employee identified himself and asked what the problem was, Tobul shouted that the music must be turned off immediately. He then grabbed the employee by the nape of his neck, warned him that it was the last time he would play such music, struck him in the face, pushed him toward his vehicle, and raised his weapon upward.

As the employee opened his car door, Tobul struck him in the face again. The employee attempted to grab Tobul's hand to prevent further assault, but bystanders intervened to separate them. Minutes later, as Tobul walked toward a military vehicle, another employee approached him to ask what had happened. Tobul responded by pushing him in the chin and throat with his hand while again raising his weapon. A soldier present at the scene eventually separated the two men.