Alleged "price tag" graffiti
Alleged "price tag" graffitiRabbis for Human Rights (file)

MK Issawi Freij (Meretz) will table a law next week that would require the state to recognize victims of so-called “price tag” attacks as terror victims, giving them the same status as Israelis who were killed or injured in terror attacks by Arabs.

"Price tag" is a euphemism for politically-motivated vandalism and criminal damage usually attributed to Jewish extremists, carried out either in revenge for Arab terrorist attacks, or in protest of Israeli government policies such as the destruction of Jewish homes in Judea and Samaria.  

Leftist MKs consistently condemn "price tag" for giving Israel a bad image, both in local and international press. However, little to no press time is given to  numerous incidents of Arab "price tagging".

In a letter to Justice Minister Tzipi Livni, Freij wrote that his bill was “an opportunity for the state to prove its commitment to fighting price tag attacks. The bill I will be presenting will ensure that the state compensates them as it does victims of terror attacks.”

Until now, he said, “the state recognized the damage only to those hurt by terror attacks. This bill will expand that group to include victims of racism. We seek to end the discrimination against Arabs in compensation matters,” he added.

Currently, Freij said, “Israel was failing at enforcing the law against the terrorists who commit the price tag crimes, as well as at compensating the victims. This bill provides a solution to at least part of the problem.” Freij said he planned to send the bill to the Ministerial Law Committee next week for approval.

On Sunday, a construction site in Kiryat Yearim (Telz-Stone) was vandalized in what appeared to be a “price tag” attack. A tractor and shipping container were spray painted with phrases such as “price tag” and “Kahane was right.” The site’s security guard claimed that he had left his station for two hours and noticed the vandalism upon his return.