Arab riot in Akko
Arab riot in AkkoIsrael news photo: file

Two Arab men from Akko have been indicted for attempting to purchase weapons, which they planned to use against Jews in case of race riots in the city. The two, Hassan abu Ayid and Khaled Kurdi, have confessed to the charges.

The plot was revealed during the course of police interrogations of two Haifa residents suspected of dealing illegally in weapons. The Haifa men revealed during questioning that they had almost sold guns to Ayid and Kurdi, but had cancelled the sale after realizing what the weapons were to be used for.

Ayid told police that after the Haifa weapons dealers refused to sell him guns, he made other attempts to purchase weapons. He explained that he was influenced by broadcasts featuring Hizbullah leader Hassan Nasrallah.

Conspiracy indictment

Kurdi told police he had decided to buy a gun following recent riots in Jerusalem, where Muslims clashed with police. Those clashes began following broadcasts in Arab media accusing Jews of attempting to take control of the Al-Aksa mosque on the Temple Mount.

Ayid and Kurdi were indicted Thursday; they are charged with conspiracy to commit a crime and attempting to obtain weapons illegally.

The city of Akko was the scene of violent riots in October 2008. Riots broke out on the Jewish holiday of Yom Kippur, when a mob of Muslims stormed through a Jewish neighborhood demolishing property and stoning residents. Jews fought back, and fighting continued for the next several nights. Attacks on Jews and Jewish property spread to the cities of Haifa and Lod as well.