WATCH: NY Charedi Tourists Nearly Lynched In Shechem, PA Police Evacuate Them

JERUSALEM (VINnews) — A charedi tourist from the US who accidentally entered the PA-held town of Shechem was nearly lynched by angry youths before being rescued by Palestinian police and transferred to the IDF.

Chaim Hersh Goldberger, a prominent Satmar chasid from Kiryas Joel, had taken a tour guide to show him and his wife around Samaria. The guide took him to Shilo, the site of the Mishkan in ancient times, and then to Har Gerizim where he went to the lookout point on Shechem and continued to the Samaritan neighborhood. The guide did not have Waze or any other navigating device and after a short while the couple found themselves entering the town of Shechem, which is controlled by the Palestinian Authority and is off limits for Israelis.

Goldberger described how his car was being filmed by young Arabs who were trying to gather a group to attack the car. After a few nervewracking moments, the guide tried to contact the IDF, who in turn contacted the Palestinian Police. Goldberger said he was impressed by the professional conduct of the PA police, who managed to fend off the youths and accompany him out of Shechem towards the IDF positions.

When he reached the IDF, they thought that he was one of the Breslov chasidim who often try to illegally enter Shechem without security coordination in order to visit the tomb of Yosef. Goldberger explained that he had been visiting the Samaritan village and had mistakenly driven into Shechem.