Land of Israel activist Baruch Marzel attacked Education Minister Gidon Sa'ar Tuesday, following news of a program to start teaching Arabic to Jewish students in Haifa and other parts of northern Israel with a significant Arab population, starting in the fifth grade. Arutz Sheva reported two months ago that 3,000 elementary-school students in the Judean city of Efrat will start learning the language.
Marzel said, "Arabic studies will bring about an increase in assimilation. They should learn Hebrew and be taught about the heritage of Israel." Playing on the name of the minister, he continued, "Sahar (Arabic for crescent) continues with flattery and obsequiousness."