Large groups of Israeli Arabs protested on Saturday as part of “Land Day” events in Wadi Ara and the Negev. The day marks the anniversary of violent riots in 1976 in which six Arabs were killed.
Protestors gathered in Kalansawa to rally against the planned destruction of an illegally built structure. In the Negev, protestors were joined by Arab politicians in a show of support for illegal Bedouin villages.
In a Land Day rally on Friday in Yafo, MK Jamal Zahalka accused the government of attempting to expel local Arabs. Government officials “are imposing on us a conflict that we do not want, but one which we will face and realize our right to defend our homes," he said. Protestors, many of them waving PLO flags, expressed support for Zahalka’s speech.