Quarrel over spot in queue ends in stabbing

Long lines at east Jerusalem Interior Ministry result in violent attack; residents attribute meager services to racist discrimination
Neta Sela

An altercation which erupted between two men waiting in line at an Interior Ministry office in East Jerusalem ended in a stabbing attack Tuesday afternoon.

 

The stabbing victim, who sustained light wounds, was treated in hospital, and his attacker was taken into police custody.

 

The Nablus Street Interior Ministry branch, which services some 300,000 people, is well known for its extremely long lines which wind out onto the street. Often the offices close at the end of the workday having failed to service dozens of people waiting in the queues.

 

A store owner who works opposite the ministry building told Ynet, “there are problems here all the time. People wait for hours on end.”

 

Discrimination against Arabs

 

East Jerusalem residents have filed numerous complaints in the past that the Interior Ministry’s meager services in the neighborhood are clearly discriminatory against the city’s Arab residents.

 

Jagal Husseini, of Ras al-Amud, asserted that the stabbing was a direct result of “racism because we are Arabs. Sometimes people start waiting at 5:00 a.m. to even get inside.”

 

Salah Abu Dabaat, who works at a barbershop across the street, said he witnesses problems every day. “The long line is really the biggest problem here. If you get cut in line, you have to wait much longer, and that’s why violence breaks out,” Abu Dabaat explained.

 

The problems may soon be solved, as the East Jerusalem population administration bureau is in the process of moving to new offices in nearby Wadi Jaouz. Interior Ministry officials said that the new building would be much more comfortable and accommodating to the public.

 

The ministry expressed hope that the problem of the long lines would soon be solved. In recent days, Deputy Interior Minister Ruhama Avraham toured the site and urged that the staff move to the new offices as soon as possible.