The father of the American-Israeli teenager suspected of making more than 100 fake bomb threats against North American Jewish community centers and institutions expressed great regret for the threats on Monday.
"To all of the Jews in the United States, I want to convey a clear message. We very much apologize from the bottom of our hearts," the father, told Channel 2 television. "We are good Jews. We don't hate you."
"I was in total shock over what happened," said the father, who faced the investigation, which is conducted by police and the FBI, over whether he knew about his son's alleged threats at the time they were purportedly committed. The parents of the suspect, who live with him in the coastal southern city of Ashkelon, have denied knowing anything about the threats before the teen's arrest, but they did not deny the allegations against their son.
"The world has to understand. This boy in different, he's unique" said the father in the television interview.
Following the arrest of the son, who has not been identified publicly, his lawyer, Galit Bash, said her client was suffering from severe medical problems, apparently a reference to benign brain tumors. The father told Channel 2 that his son had had three operations to remove growths.
The son will face a hearing Thursday on the authorities' request to extend his detention.