Israeli Cops Arrested After Beating Filmed

Captured on an amateur videotape as they beat and kicked Palestinians near a checkpoint outside Jerusalem, two Israeli border policemen were arrested Tuesday and denounced by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as unfit to serve in the Israeli security forces.

The beating was filmed by a Palestinian onlooker and shown Monday night on national television, raising concerns that it was part of a broader pattern of anti-Arab violence by police officers and soldiers.

The images of the officers assaulting six West Bank men who had tried to enter Israel without work permits prompted a swift response Tuesday from police and government officials. The officers were ordered held for 48 hours and questioned, and face possible charges of aggravated assault and abuse of authority.