Akko: Displaced Arab families made eligible for public housing
State to allow families whose homes were damaged during riots to reside in public housing projects; mayor promises to raise money for renovation. 'How long can we be expected to suffer,' resident asks
That State will allow Arab families which were forced out of their home during the Akko riots to reside in Amidar public housing projects, Housing and Construction Minister Ze'ev Boim's office said Monday.
The designated housing units are expected to undergo renovation in the coming days. The ministry is also looking into the displaced families' eligibility for financial aid.
During a meeting with Knesset Member Shachiv Shnaan on Sunday, Akko Mayor Shimon Lankry promised to raise the funds needed to renovate the houses damaged during the disturbances, which erupted when an Arab motorist entered a predominantly Jewish neighborhood on Yom Kippur, the holiest day on the Jewish calendar in which traffic traditionally halts.
Some of the houses were completely burned down.
"Since the riots broke out we've been moving from house to house, but how much longer can these families accommodate us?," said La'a Ramal, whose home was damaged during the riots.
Ramal told Ynet that her house had been torched three times in recent years, adding that some of her Arab neighbors decided to leave the neighborhood in light of the ongoing harassment at the hands of the Jewish residents.
"These were families with children and they feared for their lives," she said. "How long can people be expected to suffer? We are dealing with a population of young Jews who want us Arabs to leave."
