The release of a new report today by the Mossawa Advocacy Center for Arab Citizens in Israel regarding the treatment of Israeli Arabs was covered extensively in the Israeli press. The report's authors accuse Israeli authorities, the police and the judicial system of creating a climate of violence and racism against Arab citizens of Israel.



Mossawa’s report comes days after Transportation Minister Avigdor Lieberman (National Union) announced his plan for a "separation of nations," which would “transfer” Israeli Arabs deemed disloyal to the State of Israel. Mossawa called for new legislation making public discussion of such steps illegal. The report also condemns Finance Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's contention that Israel's Arab citizens constitute a "demographic problem" – citing it as an example of discourse it wishes to make illegal.



The organization, finding that 22% of Israeli Jews would vote for the outlawed Kach party - whose platform was the transfer of Arabs hostile to the Jewish State - is promoting legislation that would make it illegal to discuss the ‘transfer’ or expulsion of Israel’s Arabs. However, the organization told Israel National News that it sees no problem with the transfer of Jews and does not wish to outlaw discussion of that.



Arutz-7’s Ezra HaLevi talked to Mossawa spokesperson Abir Kopty, asking her what the legislative goals of her organization are.



“In an environment that is increasingly perceiving Arabs as a threat to the state of Israel, we are calling on the Israeli government to make it illegal to discuss transfer,” said Kopty.



“So you are against the transfer of any Israeli citizen?” asked HaLevi.



“That is correct,” replied Kopty.



“So you would agree that the forced transfer of Jewish citizens from Judea, Samaria and Gaza is reprehensible as well,” HaLevi asked.



“That is different – we don’t call that transfer, that is dismantling of settlements – we are speaking about the forced removal of people who were born here,” said Kopty, audibly flustered.



“So basically, Jews born in Judea, Samaria and Gaza can be thrown out of their homes, but the mere discussion of relocating Arabs involved with terrorism from within Israel’s pre-1967 borders should be made into a crime,” asked HaLevi.



“Look, we deal with ensuring the equal rights of Arab citizens in Israel – it is not comparable to people living in illegally occupied territories [sic],” Kopty replied.



The report also claims that Israeli Arabs do not receive protection from the police and are in fact targeted for violence, citing numerous cases of “illegal and unjustified police shootings of Arab citizens.” They also claim that there is a leniency for the police and the courts to be soft on “displays of racism against Arabs by private citizens and public figures.”



An investigation by Ha’aretz, however, revealed that at least one of the “16 Arab citizens killed by gunfire from police and security forces since October 2000 was not killed ‘by security forces' gunfire,’ as was written in the report, [but] actually killed in a motorcycle accident while being chased by police.”