Page 8 - ARUBA TODAY

A8 WORLD NEWS
Monday 30 SepteMber 2019
Electoral gains revive old dilemma for Israeli Arabs

By JOSEPH KRAUSS and Arab lawmaker from
MOHAMMED DARAGHMEH Odeh's party, arrived short-
Associated Press ly after the clashes ended.
NAZARETH, Israel (AP) — The crowd outside the po-
When election results con- lice station parted to let
firmed that an Arab alli- her through, and she met
ance had emerged as the with Israeli officers inside to
third largest bloc in Israel's press for the release of the
parliament, its leader Ay- detainees. After about 15
man Odeh reached for the minutes, she emerged with
Old Testament, tweeting what she said was a com-
in Hebrew from Psalm 118 mitment from the police to
that the stone which was process the cases quickly.
rejected had become the "Change is not going to
cornerstone. happen in a few days. It's
His message: The Arab a long battle," she told
community, long shunted The Associated Press. "We
to the margins of Israeli gained three seats but the
society, is going to use its political situation in Israel
newfound influence to set hasn't changed. The racism
the country on a more eq- is still there."
uitable path. Rights groups say system-
The results left the two big- atic discrimination in plan-
gest parties deadlocked, In this Monday, Sept. 23, 2019 photo, Israeli Arab women overlook the Mediterranean sea, in the ning and approvals has re-
but marked a victory for mixed Arab Jewish city of Jaffa, near Tel Aviv, Israel. stricted the growth of Arab
the Arab bloc and put Associated Press communities for decades,
Odeh in a strong position to forcing those with grow-
become the first Arab op- bloc recommended his op- founding: Working within also have close family ties ing families to build without
position leader, an official ponent, former army chief the system might secure to Palestinians in the occu- permits and leaving them
role that would allow him to Benny Gantz, as prime min- social gains for the mar- pied West Bank and Gaza, vulnerable to home demo-
receive high-level security ister, the first time Arab par- ginalized community, but and largely identify with litions.
briefings and meet visiting ties have backed an Israeli risks legitimizing a state that the Palestinian cause. Odeh listed housing equity
heads of state. Outraged candidate since 1992. many feel relegates them That has led many Israelis to among the Joint List's top
at what they see as Prime The potential for newfound to second-class status and view them as a fifth column demands in a New York
Minister Benjamin Netan- influence has forced Arab oppresses their Palestinian allied with the country's en- Times op-ed in which he en-
yahu's racist policies and citizens to confront a dilem- brethren in the occupied emies, fears Netanyahu has dorsed Gantz while refusing
incitement, most of the ma going back to Israel's territories. repeatedly exploited to to join his government.
"We truly want to support whip up his right-wing base He called for more resourc-
Gantz," said Abed Abed, a in election campaigns. es for law enforcement,
food wholesaler in the Arab The Joint List of Arab parties better access to hospitals, a
town of Nazareth in north- has vowed to use its po- rise in pensions for all Israelis
ern Israel. "But at the same litical influence to address and programs to combat
time we are Arabs, and the day-to-day struggles while domestic violence. He also
people in Gaza and the remaining outside any gov- called on the next govern-
West Bank are our broth- ernment. No Arab party ment to revive the peace
ers. If Gantz goes to war in has ever sat in an Israeli process with the Palestin-
Gaza tomorrow, then we government, and none of ians and to repeal a con-
can't be part of it. So we're Israel's main parties have troversial law passed last
in big trouble." invited them to do so. year declaring Israel the
Israel's Arab citizens make The issues Arab lead- nation-state of the Jewish
up 20% of the population of ers face, and the limited people.
9 million and are descend- means available to ad- "Arab Palestinian citizens
ed from Palestinians who dress them, were on display can no longer be rejected
remained in Israel following Wednesday in the northern or ignored," Odeh wrote.
the 1948 war that surround- town of Shefa Amr, known "The only future for this
ed its creation. in Hebrew as Shfaram, country is a shared future."
They have citizenship and where Israeli forces demol- A poll carried out by the
the right to vote, they ished two homes that had Israel Democracy Institute
speak Hebrew and attend been built without permits. at the start of the year, be-
Israeli universities, and have That ignited clashes be- fore Israel's unprecedented
increased their presence in tween local youth and Is- back-to-back elections,
a wide array of professions, raeli police, who detained found that 76% of Arab
from medicine to tech around a dozen people. citizens were in favor of
startups. "They consider us second- their parties joining an Is-
But they still face wide- class citizens," said Sabri raeli government and 65%
spread discrimination, par- Hamdi, one of several an- were proud to be Israeli,
ticularly when it comes to gry residents who gathered the highest rate recorded
housing, and accuse Is- outside the police station. since 2003. The nonpartisan
raeli authorities of ignoring "They want us to despair think tank polled 536 Arab
crime in their communi- and leave the country, but citizens, with a margin of er-
ties, contributing to soar- we will not." ror of plus or minus 4.5 per-
ing homicide rates. They Aida Touma-Sliman, an centage points.q