‘Intifada is possible’
Arab-Israeli public feels existential threat following Shfaram attack and will do everything to protect itself, leading organization says. Uprising, but not necessarily a militant one, is one of the options available to Israeli-Arabs, spokesman says
Menacing words? A public that feels is has been abandoned will do everything to protect itself, and therefore all options are open to us, including an intifada, a spokesman for the Supreme Arab-Israeli Monitoring Committee told Ynet Friday.
The committee, a group comprising leading Arab-Israeli public figures, convened in Nazareth Saturday in order to outline its response and protest moves in the wake of the Shfaram attack. Islamic leader calls on Arabs to ‘defend al-Aqsa mosque’
During the session, Sheikh Raed Salah, who heads the Islamic Movement’s northern branch, called on Israeli-Arabs to come to the Temple Mount next Sunday in order to “defend the al-Aqsa mosque.”
According to Salah, pullout objectors are planning to hold a rally at the Temple Mount the same day.
On Friday, the committee’s spokesman, Abed Anbatawi, said the attack is a highly unusual incident and must not be ignored.
“The terror attack attests to the fascist atmosphere that has taken hold on the entire Israeli establishment…we feel that we face existential danger as a result of fascism taking over the Israeli mentality, but we are not talking about generalizations but rather, in depth analysis,” he said.
“An intifada (uprising) is not necessarily the most likely tool, but it is possible,” he said. “We’re not just residents or citizens of this country, but rather, natives. We’ll fight for our future and our existence.”
‘We are humans’
However, Anbatawi qualified his harsh statements and stressed that the term “intifada” should be viewed as a constitutional, and not necessarily militant, term.
“The intifada is a legitimate tool in a possible democratic framework for a genuine shared future between the two people (Arab and Jewish,)” he said. “We will not be held hostage, but rather, equal citizens in our native land. It will not stop the bridge that is meant to take hold between us and the real forces of peace and democracy within Israeli society, which we are a part of.”
“After all, many Jews participated with us in Friday’s funeral processions,” Antabawi said. “We are humans, not nationalistic.”
Local media slammed
Anbatawi also chose to slam Israeli media for its coverage of the attack.
“We witnessed a demagogic campaign of deceit on behalf of the establishment and Israeli media…which again proved in the first hours of the incident that it’s an integral part of the Israeli establishment and conducts itself in an unprofessional, hostile manner when it comes to Palestinians,” he said.
“In any case, an intifada is a possibility that doesn’t necessarily depend on us only but rather, on the continuation of the fascistic atmosphere in Israel and on the extent of the threat on our existence,” Anbatawai said. “Every threatened community has the right to struggle.”
‘Proceed with administrative arrests’
Meanwhile, Abir Kopty, spokeswoman for the Musawa Center for Arab Rights in Israel said: “There’s great anger at all institutions and on Saturday we plan to discuss the rage and see what to do next. This story isn’t over today. People fear it will happen again. They fear for their lives. Because the military establishment failed, it will fail again. We always warned about it but were not heard."
In the meantime, MK Raleb Majadele, the Knesset’s Internal Affairs and Environment Committee chairman, is set to call for an emergency meeting of the committee Sunday with Internal Security Minister Gideon Ezra and Police Chief Moshe Karadi.
“Thursday’s severe failure that brought about the terrible terror attack,” Majadele said.
MK Majadele will ask security officials to share the names of right-wing radicals, who he views as potential terrorists, and immediately proceed with administrative arrests.
-Yaron Druckman contributed to the report
