Two off-duty soldiers were brutally assaulted by a group of Israeli Arabs in Haifa on Friday night, a relative of one of the victim said.

The two arrived at the Rambam Medical Center late on Friday night after one of them felt ill.

“They parked their vehicle at the entrance to the hospital. Another vehicle stopped in front of them. One of the occupants was drunk,” an uncle of one of the soldiers was quoted as saying in a Channel 2 report.

“The men in the vehicle asked the two men if they were Jews. They started assaulting them with clubs, rocks and planks of wood they found in the area,” he added.

“My nephew was hit on the head before being forced to lie on the floor. One of the attackers etched something on his head with a sharp object.”

The attack was only stopped when hospital security guards arrived on the scene, and chased away the attackers.

Four suspects were arrested on Saturday in connection with the incident.

Police Insp.-Gen. Yochanan Danino was briefed on the incident and will closely monitor the investigation, police said. He ordered local police chiefs to ensure that all of the suspects are arrested and prosecuted.

“He sees it as a very serious incident,” police added.

“The attackers and the soldiers had no prior meeting, and there was no provocation,” the uncle told Channel 2.

Both men are hospitalized at the Rambam Medical Center. One suffered spinal chord injuries, while the second sustained head injuries in the attack.

The Rambam Medical Center said its guards wrote down the license plate of the car used by the attackers and passed the details on to police. (© 1995-2011, The Jerusalem Post 02/26/12)