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BESA Center Perspectives Paper No. 1,328, October 29, 2019
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: Arab politicians blame the Israeli establishment for the rampaging violence in Israeli Arab society, but ignore the underlying problems in their own sociopolitical culture that foster that violence.
The Joint Arab List, which became the Knesset’s third-largest faction in the recent elections, is wasting no time.
Ayman Odeh, who leads the List, called for a general strike to protest the rampaging violence in Arab communities and towns across Israel. Many Arab communities demonstrated against what they called the lack of government involvement in combatting crime and violence.
Israeli Arab communities do indeed suffer serious problems, including illegal weapons in almost every home, domestic violence, and violence against women. Crime is on the rise in many Arab towns, and inter-clan murders have become routine. Arab MKs blame PM Benjamin Netanyahu and Interior Minister Gilad Erdan personally for what they perceive as a lack of initiative in addressing these problems in the Arab sector.
