A Jewish man arrested on suspicion of attacking and robbing an Arab bus driver last week has been released to house arrest, as video footage was clearly documenting the brutal assault.

“If I hadn’t run from the bus I would have died, literally,” said Ahmad Shehadeh, the victim of the beating, in an interview with Channel 13 news that aired Sunday.

Prosecutors plan on filing charges against the suspect this week, after he was caught on film beating Shehadeh as he tried to work his overnight route, the latest attack in recent months targeting Arab bus drivers in the capital.

Dressed in a tank top and kippah, the suspect boarded the bus with his friend at around 1 a.m, near the beginning of the 69 route in Neve Yaakov, a Jewish neighborhood of East Jerusalem. The bus was heading southwest toward Givat Shaul.

According to Shehadeh, the young man came up to him and began cursing him for no reason, demanding the driver provide him with identifying details.

“I said, ‘fine, I’ll give you my details,’” Shehadeh recounted. “He then once again began to curse me and nearly gave me three slaps, [caught] on the camera.” The assailant hit him a fourth time with his phone in hand, inflicting a wound to Shehadeh’s eye.

When Shehadeh tried to defend himself, the assailant began to repeatedly strike him, as can be seen in graphic security camera footage from the vehicle. The attacker’s friend then came up behind Shehadeh and choked him, restraining him as the other man continued to hit........

© The Times of Israel