Arab

2024-04-28

The mayor of the Israeli central city of Lod, Yair Revivo, penned a letter to the government in which he expresses grave concerns about the escalating crime rate and the influence of local gangs in the city just 15 minutes from Tel Aviv. Revivo noted the lack of action to combat these gangs, , which he said are increasingly armed and pose a significant threat not just to the city but to national security—and a problem he has been “shouting about for over ten years.” He pointed out that Arab gangs, in particular, are amassing more weapons and could potentially target civil aircraft with shoulder rockets due to the city's proximity to . This follows reports in Israeli media that police had found a missile and launcher during a criminal investigation into one of the central city’s kindergartens, which Revivo noted in his letter, calling it “intolerable.”  The mayor’s letter also questioned the effectiveness of security measures such as the IDF and Shin Bet, continuing, “If such a missile is luckily found by the police in Lod, God forbid we are close to the shooting of an El Al plane full of 500 passengers; a plane that will take off from Ben Gurion Airport near our city, get hijacked, hit directly, and crash.”  “Perhaps only such an event can make you wake up!” Revivo wrote. “Unfortunately, there is no need to wait for the drone from Iran; everything is already here." Amid these security concerns, the cityscape of Lod is marked by empty shops and neglected streets littered with trash, signs of a community under strain. Few people are seen outdoors, and the few who are keep a wary eye on those entering and leaving the main roads. The local economy suffers not only from a lack of domestic tourism from Palestinians coming from the West Bank due to Israeli restrictions after the war broke out but also from the absence of foreign tourists. Lod Israel, Taken on 5 August 2009 (credit: Wikimedia Commons) The atmosphere in Lod is heavy with silence, broken occasionally by gunshots. The city’s social dynamics are further complicated by its demographic composition; about 30% of its population is Arab, contributing to a sense of detachment from the rest of Israel and exacerbating the city's challenges.  Near the mosque in the Arab part of the city, inside a hookah shop full of Arab customers either living or working in Lod, one of them catches attention for a tattoo of an M16 on his arm, as well as an image of a rose and a person covered with a balaclava on his hand.  One citizen, Muhammad, expressed his concern to The Media Line, “There is a lot of criminality here. Despite living in East Jerusalem, I work here and come very often after work. With the war currently going on, the situation is getting worse day by day.” He added: “The situation is not completely under the police’s control due to the power of many local gangs. However, I can also say that there is always a stereotype related to us as Arabs. Jews portray us as troublemakers and are racist towards us. In the case of Lod and Ramla, the problem is mostly caused by both sides, not just us. There is, in fact, criminality among Jews too.” “I just wish peace for this land and further help for mixed cities, such as Lod, in this process. We should coexist, but, so far, we mainly live separately from one another.” In the Jewish part of the city, the situation is the same.  Yossi, a who has lived in the city for seventeen years, told The Media Line: “Aside from the security granted by the city, as Jewish citizens, we pay an extra 25 shekel per month each. It doesn’t matter about one’s salary, but this hasn’t brought more police or any changes.” “We need to learn to coexist; we have no choice. It is difficult after the 7th of October to trust one another again. Sincerely, I think that Arabs live overall well in Israel, way better than other Arab countries,” he said. Yossi added, "Our mayor didn’t do the right things here. There is no structural plan for both Jewish and Arab citizens. This exacerbated the distance between the two communities.” Gavi, another Jewish citizen, also acknowledged the lack of security in the city. “During the night, it is impossible to feel safe going out; our major promised to everyone better conditions, but this hasn’t happened yet,” he told The Media Line. “In this state of sort of anarchy, I think that Arab gangs may be capable of throwing rockets from here against planes in Ben Gurion,” Gavi added. Regarding Jewish gangs, it seems that they have lost power over the years and are not as relevant as Arab ones in Lod.  Gavi said, "I know for sure that they do not cooperate. Maybe it was like this at the beginning. Now we see the overall control and power in the hands of the Arab ones.” Revivo did not respond to a request for comment from The Media Line. ...قراءة المزيد

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2024-04-20

Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian joked a day after Israel’s strikes in Iran that the weapons used were “ that our children play with – not drones,” according to a Saturday article from Iran’s semi-official Mehr News Agency.  Making the comments in an interview with NBC News, Abdollahian said "As long as there is no new adventurism by Israel against our interests, then we are not going to have any new reactions.” "If Israel takes a decisive action against my country and this is proven to us," he said, "our response will be immediate and to the maximum and will cause them to regret it." The foreign minister went on to threaten that his comments were only a warning, and that “… We could have also targeted all the economic ports of Israel.” The IDF displays an Iranian ballistic missile which they retrieved from the Dead Sea after Iran launched drones and missiles towards Israel, at Julis military base, in southern Israel April 16, 2024. (credit: REUTERS/AMIR COHEN) Abdollahian said that the only reason that Iran had not successfully hit Haifa, Tel Aviv or any major port was because Iran’s “red lines [were] civilians…We only had a military purpose.” A during Iran’s mass drone attack which saw hundreds of UAVs and multiple ballistic missiles fired seemingly randomly at Israel. While few Iranian aerial assault weapons successfully hit Israel, one hit a northern Arab village and one hit Arad- which is where the 7-year-old girl was killed.  ...قراءة المزيد

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2024-04-20

Despite reports that is considering continuing its role as a mediator between Hamas and Israel, the Hamas leadership is considering leaving the country, the Wall Street Journal reported on Saturday. According to the report, sources in the Arab world said that in recent days, Hamas has been holding talks with two Arab countries and noted that one of them is Oman. As you may recall, in recent years, with the accession of Arab countries to the , Israel has also had contacts with Oman, and last year, Muscat approved Israeli flights to pass through its airspace. However, this decision was canceled with the outbreak of war on October 7th. If the leadership of Hamas leaves Qatar, there is a fear that the crisis in relations will cause the collapse of the contacts for the release of Israeli hostages from the captivity of Hamas, in which Qatar serves as a central mediator. Earlier this week, as mentioned, the Prime Minister of Qatar, , announced that his country is "re-examining its position as a mediator between Israel and Gaza." Qatar's Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani makes statements to the media with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, in Doha, Qatar, October 13, 2023. (credit: Jacquelyn Martin/Reuters) "Our position is being misused by politicians for their own purposes," said Al-Thani, his words come a few days after Hamas announced once again that the current outline for the hostage deal is not acceptable to it. Al-Thani also said, "We had extensive contacts with Tehran and Washington to prevent any escalation. We hear from all the parties in the region that they do not want war - the best way to reduce the escalation in the region is to stop the war in Gaza." Last Sunday, it was reported that Hamas's response to the mediators' proposal included a willingness to release only about 20 abductees in exchange for a six-week ceasefire - about half the number of abductees that the outline originally included, an Israeli official said. The Israeli official pointed out that Hamas is using the answer he gave to the mediators with "ridiculous excuses" to explain the reduction in the number of abductees he is willing to release in the first phase of the deal. For example, Hamas claims that some of the abductees included in this part of the deal - women, men over the age of 50, and men in serious medical conditions - are not alive or are not in its hands. ...قراءة المزيد

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2024-04-20

Whether you like it or not, Iran’s strike on Israel last weekend turned the Islamic Republic into a key player in the region. One must be clearheaded about the motives behind Iran’s attack. Iran did not attack Israel to express solidarity with the Palestinian people or in defense of the Palestinian cause. Nor did it launch its missiles on behalf of Hezbollah, Syria, or the Houthis in Yemen. Its attack was motivated by a political strategy of shattering Israel’s aerial hegemony in the Middle East. From now on, must understand that a tough new player has joined the race for aerial superiority in the region.  The Iranian message was clear. Any Israeli strike on any Iranian target, whether in Lebanon, Syria, or Iran itself, will be met by a ruthless and immediate retaliatory attack of the same magnitude. The equilibrium of Israel’s strategic deterrence has been devastated to the extent that Israel may need decades to restore it, if it succeeds in restoring it at all.  Had Iran aimed for a deadly strike on Israel, it wouldn’t have told half the world about its intention to strike, naming locations and time frames. . And it did so well, with little arrogance and great care to avoid any surprise escalation. The primary outcome of the strike for Iran was increasing its bargaining chips in the talks with the US on Tehran’s nuclear capabilities that have dragged on since being opened a few years ago. Israel needs US support in any upcoming strike it plans on Iran. If Iran decides to break all the rules, turn the table upside down, and launch a massive attack on Israel, or if escalation between the two parties gets out of control and turns into an all-out war, Israel’s chances of defending itself without outside help are minimal. The gimmick attack last weekend was difficult for Israel’s air defenses to abort. Had it not been for military intervention from the US and other Western allies and assistance of neighboring Arab countries-that allegedly intercepted and shot down some of the weaponized drones-Israel would have faced a very unpleasant scenario, which could have involved numerous human casualties and widespread destruction of areas hit by incoming missiles and drones. The missile strike over the weekend was a test balloon through which Iranian military leaders wanted to gauge what political reactions and military challenges to expect should they decide to attack Israel in the future. It was also a test balloon for the Israelis, who learned the limits of their aerial defense capacity. Regardless of whether any future Iranian assault would be in retaliation to an Israeli attack-or simply an Iranian decision to initiate an open war against what it likes to call “the Zionist entity”-Israel will need its big brother, the US, to be there to help defend its skies from incoming missiles. brought to mind the US decision to overthrow the regime of former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein because of the 39 Scud missiles Iraq launched against Israel during the 1991 Gulf War. Firing rockets against Israeli targets was something neither the US nor Israel accepted. The US asked Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Shamir, a hard-line right-wing loyalist of Revisionist Zionist Ze’ev Jabotinsky, to stand down without firing one shot against Iraq. In return, the US promised to punish Saddam Hussein and overthrow his regime. The US kept its promise, and Saddam’s regime was toppled in April 2003.  Will the US do the same to Iran? I don’t think so. Why? Because back then, Iraq stood alone, facing a broad international coalition led by the US, while impotent Russia was seated on the side bench watching from afar. Today’s Iran is not an isolated country that the US can quickly attack without considering the possibility of that attack causing a global conflict equivalent to World War III. Russia is Iran’s strategic ally. The highly sophisticated and advanced weaponry the Russians manufacture is already in Iranian hands, including batteries of S-300 surface-to-air anti-aircraft missiles that are capable of intercepting and shooting down the US’s flagship fighter bomber, the F-35. Imagine a situation where missiles are simultaneously launched against Israel by Hezbollah in Lebanon, the Syrian army, the Houthis in Yemen, and Iran. Each of those groups has an undeniable missile capacity that perhaps won’t destroy Israel but can at least cause a severe headache and plight to the homefront. Israel can quickly identify every missile that is launched from Iranian batteries in Iran because the time factor is on its side, giving the opportunity for air defenses to intercept and shoot down those missiles before they enter Israel’s airspace. Any missile launched from Iran needs an average of 10 minutes to reach Israel, giving the Israeli air defense systems time to calculate the missile’s destination and alert the intended targets. But this capacity is next to zero when it comes to intercepting missiles launched from batteries that are near Israel and are capable of hitting their Israeli targets within one or two minutes. It is no longer a secret that Hezbollah has a massive arsenal of missiles and rockets, many of which are highly accurate. The estimated number of such missiles is at least in the tens of thousands. Some say it is up to 100,000, and others believe it is even more than 150,000. Hezbollah knows well that should any conflict break out with Israel, it won’t have the luxury of repeating what happened during Israel’s second war on Lebanon in 2006. In other words, Hezbollah cannot sustain devastating Israeli airstrikes all over Lebanon, which would destroy much of the country’s strategic facilities and infrastructure. Knowing that Hezbollah could not handle a conflict that resembled a boxing match, in which both sides exchange missile punches, both Israel and Hezbollah would opt for the jackpot confrontation of destroying the other side in one or two blows and not waiting for the third.  Israel’s air defenses are not built to face the threat of thousands of missiles falling all over the country in one or two massive strikes. In such a scenario, Israel would make the decision to protect strategic sites, including military and industry sites. At the same time, the overwhelming majority of the homefront would have to rely on the limited defenses of hiding in safe rooms and bomb shelters until the war’s end.  Israel says the Iron Dome’s current estimated interception rate is close to 90%. I think the rate is a lot less than that. Nevertheless, even 90% accuracy doesn’t provide the defense Israel needs. Out of 10,000 missiles launched, 1,000 that hit their destined targets are a real threat to Israel. The fear that 1,000 missiles can hit small and vital strategic power plants, factories, and state institutions, such as the Knesset in Jerusalem or the Ministry of Defense offices in Tel Aviv or other sites, is undoubtedly an intolerable threat for most Israelis. This apocalyptic scenario is horrific but not unexpected. Israel’s intransigence on the Palestinian front and its unwavering rejection of the two-state solution based on the June 1967 lines will keep this conflict boiling in a pressure cooker. One day, it will explode, with much higher magnitudes than what has already been witnessed over the past seven and a half decades. Elias Zananiri is a veteran Palestinian journalist who has held several senior positions in the Palestine Liberation Organization In the past two decades as a political advisor and media consultant.  ...قراءة المزيد

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2024-03-13

The trend of violence and crime in has only grown within the first 2 months of 2024. Last weekend was particularly bloody, a painful reminder of the rampant levels of violence in Arab society and their culture as a whole. Recently, five Arab citizens were added to the number of victims, which currently includes 38 men, women, and one child since the beginning of the year. This is a shocking figure that is only continuing to rise. By this time in 2023, a year that broke a historical record in violence and crime, the number of victims was just 30. In other words, if this trend continues, this year will break another bloody record. took place last Saturday evening in the Arab cities of Yarka, Maghar, Baka al-Gharbiya, Arad, Tayibe, and Acre, all within a few hours. Some of these cities are only mentioned in the news because the incidents ended with wounded people. Unfortunately, crime is rising and spreading everywhere. The dead are piling up - and the budgets are being cut. It is understandable that security needs during wartime require major cuts in the state budget, but it is not possible that the coalition funds won't be cut with them. This issue will cost human lives. Instead of declaring a state of emergency and treating the root cause of the problem, the government proves that it either does not want to or cannot deal with it. The government must give Arab citizens the most basic level of security and should not cut budgets for it.The dead are piling up - and the budgets are being cut. Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich at a discussion in the Socio-Economic Cabinet (credit: Photo processing, spokeswoman for the Ministry of Finance) Neglecting the personal security of 21% of the population in Israel is gnawing at Israeli society from the inside. Every violent incident has secondary victims – people who were uninvolved or were in the wrong place at the wrong time. The previous government proved that with hard work, it's possible to reduce the levels of violence and crime. However, since the inauguration of this government, the increase in the number of victims has been unprecedented, and the budget for the fight against violence has been cut. This comes under the direction of . Ben-Gvir is the man least suited for this job. In order to understand the magnitude of this, it is worth looking back at the sharp increase in the number of victims of violence and crime in Arab society. The year 2020, for example, ended with 96 victims, in 2021 with 123 victims, and in 2022, a moderate slowing of the trend was recorded with 116 victims. The year 2023, when Ben-Gvir's term began, broke a historical record in the levels of violence in Arab society and ended with 244 victims, more than twice the previous years. Ben-Gvir needs to be replaced. The minister has failed completely in maintaining security and safeguarding the personal security of the country's citizens. Ben-Gvir succeeds only in invoking disputes between Jews and Arabs. The man least suited for the job. Minister of National Security Itamar Ben Gvir (credit: Yonatan Zindel/Flash90) This challenge is bigger than Ben-Gvir in several dimensions and it costs human lives. How much more blood must be spilled before Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu shows him the door? It is not at all clear whether the government is interested in addressing the serious phenomenon of violence and crime in Arab society. Further, the Israeli government's actions disregard the reality that Arab citizens of Israel live in constant risk. It is time for action. The trend for 2024 can still – and must – be reversed. ...قراءة المزيد

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2024-02-19

Real estate mogul Mohamed Hadid on Monday compared Israel to and said that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was killing more children a day than Nazi leader Adolf Hitler did at the Auschwitz death camp. “Congratulations, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, you beat him, you win, you win big time, you are the mightiest, you are Goliath,” Hadid wrote on Instagram with an accompanying infographic displaying Hitler and Netanyahu next to figures claiming that 178 Palestinian children had been killed each day in Gaza in October and November, while 127 Jews have been murdered at Auschwitz during World War II. “Congratulations for this win. You beat him in the massacre of the century.” Hadid on Sunday wrote that the Palestinians welcomed with “visas” and “guest houses” but that the refugees turned on them and “stole my life, my home, and my dignity.” The post showed a picture of a Jewish refugee ship caught by the British with a banner that said The Germans destroyed our families and homes; don’t destroy our hopes.” This was juxtaposed with a picture of and unattributed text stating, “We are fighting human animals. There are no rules. We will kill them all.” Defense Minister Yoav Galant had said on October 9 that in response to the October 7 massacre, Israel would not be providing electricity, food, water, or fuel to the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip as they were “fighting human animals and we will act accordingly.” Hadid, who was born in Nazareth and whose family fled the War of Independence for Lebanon, said that the Jewish refugees came “to my country like little thieves with a plan…Zionist plan…you made me a refugee at age of nine years old.” The American real estate developer wrote in an Instagram story on Monday that the Arab world did not hate Jews until 1947. “The Palestinians are Semites,” said Hadid. “They can’t be antisemites.” This is not the first time that Hadid has made comparisons between the Holocaust and the Israel’s war against Hamas. On December 17, he compared blindfolded and stripped suspected terrorists to naked Jews prior to their execution during the Holocaust. ...قراءة المزيد

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