Acre riots
On erev Yom Kippur Jamal Taufik drove his car into a Jewish neighborhood in Acre (Akko) with music blaring. Whether this was a deliberate provocation or merely a case of a foolish route decision, his car was soon surrounded by Jews going to prayer, and when he refused to turn around they angrily stoned his car and he was injured. Meanwhile a rumor spread in the Arab sections that Arabs were under attack and a gang of Arab youths surged into the Jewish section throwing stones and breaking store windows. This lead to a riot between Jews and Arabs.
Some reports say the police reacted too slowly, other reports say the police were mainly Arabs because of the holiday, and so did not respond appropriately to the situation. However, reinforcements were sent in, and by Yom Kippur day there were supposedly an additional 700 police in the city. However, the riots continued. Some say that the reason was that on the following day (it was Friday) the Imams in their Mosques incited their congregants to violence. Others say that Jewish youths continued their violence, torching the homes of several Arabs known to be living in Jewish neighborhoods. On Saturday the riots still continued despite further police reinforcements.
The irony of this is that Akko is one of the few cities that are mixed Jewish and Arab where there has been a history of good relations between the two communities. Whether or not it means much, after a meeting with the police, Arab community leaders agreed to issue a statement condemning Jamal Taufik for driving thru a Jewish neighborhood on Yom Kippur. In other words, they accept the fact that it was an Arab action, whether deliberate or accidental, that provoked the initiation of the riots.
Now there is condemnation by community leaders on both sides of the violence and a call for the police to arrest and prosecute all those who broke the law, including any Imams who incited violence (there is no indication that any Rabbis are accused of inciting violence). Police were put on alert in other mixed Jewish-Arab cites including Jerusalem, but so far there is no evidence that rioting will spread.
However, the situation is always unpredictable since the Arabs often react to rumors of Jewish actions that are false, such as attempting to destroy the al-Aksa Mosque in Jerusalem. The last time there was widespread Arab rioting, the leader of the northern branch of the Muslim league was arrested for incitement. He eventually agreed that there had actually been no Jewish attack, but he said that it was what he believed would happen.
Meanwhile, Hamas issued a statement in Gaza that "a day will come when we will purge the Zionists from Acre." Of course, all Arabs in Israel will hear this statement in Arabic.
Let's hope that tempers cool and those responsible for breaches of law and order will be arrested and punished.
Some reports say the police reacted too slowly, other reports say the police were mainly Arabs because of the holiday, and so did not respond appropriately to the situation. However, reinforcements were sent in, and by Yom Kippur day there were supposedly an additional 700 police in the city. However, the riots continued. Some say that the reason was that on the following day (it was Friday) the Imams in their Mosques incited their congregants to violence. Others say that Jewish youths continued their violence, torching the homes of several Arabs known to be living in Jewish neighborhoods. On Saturday the riots still continued despite further police reinforcements.
The irony of this is that Akko is one of the few cities that are mixed Jewish and Arab where there has been a history of good relations between the two communities. Whether or not it means much, after a meeting with the police, Arab community leaders agreed to issue a statement condemning Jamal Taufik for driving thru a Jewish neighborhood on Yom Kippur. In other words, they accept the fact that it was an Arab action, whether deliberate or accidental, that provoked the initiation of the riots.
Now there is condemnation by community leaders on both sides of the violence and a call for the police to arrest and prosecute all those who broke the law, including any Imams who incited violence (there is no indication that any Rabbis are accused of inciting violence). Police were put on alert in other mixed Jewish-Arab cites including Jerusalem, but so far there is no evidence that rioting will spread.
However, the situation is always unpredictable since the Arabs often react to rumors of Jewish actions that are false, such as attempting to destroy the al-Aksa Mosque in Jerusalem. The last time there was widespread Arab rioting, the leader of the northern branch of the Muslim league was arrested for incitement. He eventually agreed that there had actually been no Jewish attack, but he said that it was what he believed would happen.
Meanwhile, Hamas issued a statement in Gaza that "a day will come when we will purge the Zionists from Acre." Of course, all Arabs in Israel will hear this statement in Arabic.
Let's hope that tempers cool and those responsible for breaches of law and order will be arrested and punished.
posted by Jack Cohen at 7:53 AM
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