Palestine Think Tank

From Khalid Amayreh in Occupied East Jerusalem

9 October, 2008

Hundreds of religious Jewish extremists and hooligans laid siege to and assaulted  an Arab family home in downtown Akka Wednesday  night, triggering widespread riots in the mixed Arab-Jewish coastal city in northern Palestine/Israel.

The Jews accused the Arab family of “violating the sanctity of Yom Kippur”  by way of driving their car.

Eyewitnesses and police sources reported that dozens of vehicles and businesses were damaged after police forces violently repressed  hundreds of local Arab youths who had attempted to free the besieged Arab family.

Arab  sources in Akka said Jewish hooligans  attacked “and may have tried to lynch” the Ahmed Sha’aban family which lives in the predominantly Jewish neighborhood of Porla in the eastern suburbs of the city.

“The extremists, hundreds of them wanted to make sure that we, Muslims, observe the Yom Kippur and not conduct our life as usual. Next time, they will demand that we convert to Judaism, or leave,” said Jamal Adham,  who was attacked  and slightly injured by the extremists.

According to Ahmed Odeh, a member of  the Akka municipal council, the riots and the subsequent acts sabotage were triggered by  provocative efforts by Jewish fanatics to impose a total curfew on the town’s non-Jewish inhabitants.

Odeh said he had received assurances from the police that the city would remain open and that non-Jews would be allowed to move freely during the Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement) holiday.

Odeh added that he was later  surprised to find out that all town’s entrances and exits were tightly closed, apparently by a private security firm answerable to the town’s municipal council.

“Even access to the Old town, where most of the Arabs live, was blocked.”

The Israeli Arab leader  pointed out that  when Arabs in the Old quarter of Akka received word that Jewish extremists were laying siege to the Sha’aban family, dozens or hundreds of Arab youngsters headed for the home, trying to protect the family from a possible lynching.

In the meanwhile, as many as a thousand Jews arrived at the Sha'aban family home, along with dozens of crack policemen.

Some of the people in the huge crowed reportedly shouted “ Mavet le Arabim” or “death to the Arabs” and “Arabs out.”

The Arab youths from  the  town’s old quarter  couldn’t make it to the besieged home as  reinforced  police forces  prevented them by force from reaching the site.

Many Arab protesters were injured from beating  by police or as result of tear gas inhalation.

Reacting to police brutality, some Arab youths reportedly attacked Jewish property, including cars and businesses.

However, no acts of arson were reported.

“Unfortunately, some unruly guys indulged in vandalism. I totally reject this behavior which is incompatible with our values and doesn’t serve the cause coexistence in the town.”

Odeh said the “racist anti-Arab discourse” within the Israeli Jewish society encouraged the extremists to try to impose their will on society.

“It is time these extremists understand that this land is inhabited by Jews and non-Jews and that non-Jews have to conduct their life in accordance with the law.”

The Ha’arez newspaper quoted the  head of the Acre police station, Chief Superintendent Avi Edri, as saying that the “altercation” was initially an isolated incident  that escalated due to the involvement of Jewish and Arab gangs.

"This is a very serious incident that the city of Acre has not seen the likes of in recent years and we will deal with all the rioters and those who take the law into their own hands with an iron fist," Edri said.

Abbas Zkoor, an Arab member of the Israeli Knesset urged the Police to protect Israeli Arab citizens from Jewish fanatics especially during Jewish holidays.

Zkoor was quoted as charging that for years, young Jews have gathered at city entrances on Yom Kippur and stoned passing Arab cars, endangering the lives of the passengers.

"Despite numerous complaints filed in police stations, officers were not sent to disperse the racist gatherings," Zkoor said.

He also asked Chief Rabbi Shlomo Amar to condemn such behavior, which "surely contravenes the basic principles of the Jewish religion."

see also (with video):

Police spread across Acre in tense wake of Arab-Jewish riots

An Israel Police source said on Thursday that the police had no prior intelligence about the possibility of clashes between Jewish and Arab residents in the northern town of Acre, which erupted on the eve of Yom Kippur on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, police forces deployed in large numbers throughout the city on Friday in an effort to repress any residual violence.

The riots, some of the worst the city has seen in years, began around midnight on Wednesday after an Arab resident of the Old City of Acre drove his car into a predominantly Jewish neighborhood in eastern Acre, where he said he lived.

Jewish teens at the scene said the Arab man was deliberately making noise and smoking cigarettes. The teens attacked the man and shortly afterward, a group of Arab teens arrived at the scene, igniting a riot.

When news of the incident spread, a crowd of Arabs began to gather along the main commercial street in the new city, Ben Ami Street. Dozens of cars and shops along the street were vandalized.

Police faced off against hundreds of Jewish rioters chanting "death to Arabs" and trying to block the city's main thoroughfare. Border Police and officers on horse-back meanwhile tried to prevent the rioters from reaching the city center, where hundreds of Arab rioters had gathered.

Arabs and Jews hurled rocks at each other at the Acre train station and police used water hoses and tear gas to disperse them. In the Old City, Arabs threw stones and burned tires. Two people were reported injured, one by a police horse and the other by a stone to the head.

Police summoned reinforcements from other districts earlier Thursday in anticipation of a renewal of the violent clashes. Hundreds of police are now stationed in the city.

Police Commissioner David Cohen met Thursday in Acre with Mayor Shimon Lankry and lawmakers David Azoulay (Shas) and Abbas Zkoor (United Arab List-Ta'al), who live in Acre. "The goal now is to restore quiet," Cohen said. "I call on both sides to continue coexistence as it has been for years. Public leaders should work to bring quiet and order," he added.

The police source also noted that violence between Jews and Arabs stems from gaps in infrastructure and services between the two communities, and is the responsibility of the state but often lands in the "police emergency room."

Police conduct during the Acre violence will be scrutinized in the coming days. During violence in October 2007 in the Upper Galilee town of Peki'in over the installation of a celular antenna, a police inquiry committee found that the Northern District had failed in its response.

Acre police chief Avi Edri told Haaretz that the initial incident was an isolated one that escalated due to the involvement of Jewish and Arab gangs.

So far, a number of suspected rioters have been arrested and police say they plan to detain more suspects. "We will deal with all the rioters and those who take the law into their own hands with an iron fist," said Chief Superintendent Edri.

In a letter to Public Security Minister Avi Dichter, Zkoor wrote that police should be deployed around Jewish towns on Yom Kippur to prevent Jews from stoning cars driven by Arabs. Dichter's office on Thursday confirmed receipt of Zkoor's letter. "Without reference to his letter, police have deployed this year, as every year, with reinforcements ahead of the holidays and particularly Yom Kippur."

Zkoor warned on Thursday that it will be very difficult to hold the upcoming annual Acre theater festival in the Old City. He also warned of clashes during Sukkot in the mixed Arab-Jewish Wolfson neighborhood.

Tags: Israel News, Yom Kippur, Acre
An Israel Police source said on Thursday that the police had no prior intelligence about the possibility of clashes between Jewish and Arab residents in the northern town of Acre, which erupted on the eve of Yom Kippur on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, police forces deployed in large numbers throughout the city on Friday in an effort to repress any residual violence.

The riots, some of the worst the city has seen in years, began around midnight on Wednesday after an Arab resident of the Old City of Acre drove his car into a predominantly Jewish neighborhood in eastern Acre, where he said he lived.

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Jewish teens at the scene said the Arab man was deliberately making noise and smoking cigarettes. The teens attacked the man and shortly afterward, a group of Arab teens arrived at the scene, igniting a riot.

When news of the incident spread, a crowd of Arabs began to gather along the main commercial street in the new city, Ben Ami Street. Dozens of cars and shops along the street were vandalized.

Police faced off against hundreds of Jewish rioters chanting "death to Arabs" and trying to block the city's main thoroughfare. Border Police and officers on horse-back meanwhile tried to prevent the rioters from reaching the city center, where hundreds of Arab rioters had gathered.

Arabs and Jews hurled rocks at each other at the Acre train station and police used water hoses and tear gas to disperse them. In the Old City, Arabs threw stones and burned tires. Two people were reported injured, one by a police horse and the other by a stone to the head.

Police summoned reinforcements from other districts earlier Thursday in anticipation of a renewal of the violent clashes. Hundreds of police are now stationed in the city.

Police Commissioner David Cohen met Thursday in Acre with Mayor Shimon Lankry and lawmakers David Azoulay (Shas) and Abbas Zkoor (United Arab List-Ta'al), who live in Acre. "The goal now is to restore quiet," Cohen said. "I call on both sides to continue coexistence as it has been for years. Public leaders should work to bring quiet and order," he added.

The police source also noted that violence between Jews and Arabs stems from gaps in infrastructure and services between the two communities, and is the responsibility of the state but often lands in the "police emergency room."

Police conduct during the Acre violence will be scrutinized in the coming days. During violence in October 2007 in the Upper Galilee town of Peki'in over the installation of a celular antenna, a police inquiry committee found that the Northern District had failed in its response.

Acre police chief Avi Edri told Haaretz that the initial incident was an isolated one that escalated due to the involvement of Jewish and Arab gangs.

So far, a number of suspected rioters have been arrested and police say they plan to detain more suspects. "We will deal with all the rioters and those who take the law into their own hands with an iron fist," said Chief Superintendent Edri.

In a letter to Public Security Minister Avi Dichter, Zkoor wrote that police should be deployed around Jewish towns on Yom Kippur to prevent Jews from stoning cars driven by Arabs. Dichter's office on Thursday confirmed receipt of Zkoor's letter. "Without reference to his letter, police have deployed this year, as every year, with reinforcements ahead of the holidays and particularly Yom Kippur."

Zkoor warned on Thursday that it will be very difficult to hold the upcoming annual Acre theater festival in the Old City. He also warned of clashes during Sukkot in the mixed Arab-Jewish Wolfson neighborhood.

http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1027633.html