Jaffa restaurant torched in possible 'price tag' act
Slogans including 'Kahane was right' sprayed on restaurant walls. Police not ruling out option vandalism wasn't politically-motivated
The Abu al-Abed restaurant in Jaffa was torched and spray-painted with "price tag" and "Kahane was right" slogans overnight on Monday. The restaurant staff discovered the messages on Monday morning.
Despite the nature of the graffiti, police are in no hurry to point fingers at right-wing extremists, saying "all leads are being pursued."
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The restaurant, which offers both Lebanese and Palestinian dishes, was established in 1949 in Jaffa's Yefet street. The owner said it was open as late as 11 pm on Sunday.
Graffit on restaurant walls (Photo: Eli Algart)
However, some time during the night unknown vandals poured flammable substance through the kitchen window and set the restaurant on fire. They also spray-painted "price tag" slogans. No one noticed the smoke coming out of the building until morning.
The owner decided to close the restaurant for the day in order to perform repair work. "This restaurant has been active since 1949," he said. "It’s been through all the wars, so obviously it will survive this too.
"Jaffa is an island of sanity and it's a pity there's a group of people that want to destroy this."
Police have sent over a team of investigators who are also looking into the possibility that the restaurant was vandalized over non-political motives.
The owner, however is very clear on the motive. "They were probably irked by the Lebanese and Palestinian dishes, but that's our food, what can you do."
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