Price Tag Attacks in Israel
A boy observes damage to a burnt mosque in a Price Tag attack by Jewish extremists in northern Israel. (REUTERS)

Israeli security forces arrested prominent right-wing activists in the West Bank early Thursday, reports Haaretz.

Six activists were arrested as part of a joint operation by Israel Police and Shin Bet forces.

The group are suspected of tracking the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) in the region.

A person close to those arrested said "the police have gone mad."

Jewish extremists have been responsible for a series of recent violent attacks on IDF soldiers and other targets, and Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu last month approved measured to crack down on such activists.

The new legislation will see the introduction of detention orders for the activists - measures usually reserved for Palestinian suspected of being a security risk.

Netanyahu also agreed to allow the trying of Jewish extremists in military courts.

But the head of the Jewish state rejected a recommendation to label them as a "terror group."

In contradiction to ministers, who have been for months warning of a growing danger from Zionist extremism, Netanyahu said he views these activists as "anarchists more than terrorists."

This month has seen clashes between dozens of right-wing activists and police officers in Jerusalem, amid attempts to arrest suspects linked to recent "price-tag" attacks involving the torching of mosques and the targeting of Muslim areas.

A mosque of historical significance was set alight Wednesday evening in another such attack.

Israel