About 115 Israeli-Arabs have been arrested on suspicion of assisting terrorist attacks since the beginning of 2001. GSS Director Avi Dichter said that through the end of July, about 100 had been arrested - and this does not include the two groups of terrorists arrested in the past week in Jerusalem and the Galilee. Chief Rabbi Shmuel Eliyahu of Tzfat, asked to comment on the phenomenon of Israeli-Arab terrorism, recalled that the murderous attack at the Meiron Junction earlier this month (9 killed) saw other manifestations of anti-Israeli feeling as well:
"An Arab doctor at the hospital in Tzfat expressed solidarity with the murderers, blaming the victims and not the murderers. He also did not hurry to give medical aid; it's a matter of dispute whether it was a delay of a half-hour, or of an hour - but only after he was yelled at, did he administer the required medical care." The story was publicized at the time, but the hospital denied it.
Rabbi Eliyahu said that many Arabs say openly, "'The day will come when we will throw you out and live here instead… This is my house, and we'll throw you out of here…' They are not shy, but rather say it quite brazenly." Asked if there were any exceptions, Rabbi Eliyahu mentioned some of his Druze neighbors who are "literally Righteous Gentiles… [Regarding Arabs, however], they are all to be considered suspect, unless proven otherwise."
He recalled the situation of two years ago during the Arab riots of October 2000:
"We were literally under siege, and I was simply unable to travel to Jerusalem! It's hard to believe that in the State of Israel there would be such a situation… This is a dangerous reality, and it has to be stopped, and it can be done first of all by making clear to every rioter that his house will be boarded up, that he will be expelled... They have to stop threatening policemen: I can tell you that even before it releases its findings, the Ohr Commission [investigating the riots and the police response that led to the killing of 13 Arabs] has caused tremendous damage. There have been cases where Arabs have grabbed lands, and the police were afraid to take action; these things are well known…"
Arutz-7 also spoke today with Carmiel Mayor Adi Eldar; Carmiel is less than five kilometers to the east of the hometown of the Bakri family, Bea'na. Asked how he feels about the news of the involvement of his neighbors in the terrorist massacre at Meiron, Eldar said,
"I feel betrayed, and I feel very uncomfortable… Several years ago, [former U.S. Secretary of State] James Baker came here, and I stood together with him on a mountaintop overlooking the area, and I told him how Jews and Arabs live here in peace together, a fine example of coexistence… I would like to hope [now] that it's just a small group of criminals, people with no conscience, and that this does not prove anything about the population in general, which is OK and loyal to the State, and I in fact know many of them personally who have fine ties with us."
"Why are you so confident?" asked Arutz-7's Haggai Segal. "Didn’t you see the tens of thousands at the Temple Mount, many from the Galilee, applauding the young girls wearing the green bands of Hamas this past weekend?"
Eldar: "It's definitely true that since the Six-Day War, when the borders were broken through, there has been an ongoing process. This is why I am in favor of a clear and protected border between --
Segal: "Between Carmiel and Bea'na [both of which are in the State of Israel proper]?"
Eldar: "No, don't put words in my mouth [chuckles]. I am referring to a border between, ehhh, the State of Israel of before the Six Day War to, ehh, what is happening. I think that if there was a clear border, then there wouldn't be an influence of Hamas and the other murderers upon the Arabs of the Land of Israel…"
"An Arab doctor at the hospital in Tzfat expressed solidarity with the murderers, blaming the victims and not the murderers. He also did not hurry to give medical aid; it's a matter of dispute whether it was a delay of a half-hour, or of an hour - but only after he was yelled at, did he administer the required medical care." The story was publicized at the time, but the hospital denied it.
Rabbi Eliyahu said that many Arabs say openly, "'The day will come when we will throw you out and live here instead… This is my house, and we'll throw you out of here…' They are not shy, but rather say it quite brazenly." Asked if there were any exceptions, Rabbi Eliyahu mentioned some of his Druze neighbors who are "literally Righteous Gentiles… [Regarding Arabs, however], they are all to be considered suspect, unless proven otherwise."
He recalled the situation of two years ago during the Arab riots of October 2000:
"We were literally under siege, and I was simply unable to travel to Jerusalem! It's hard to believe that in the State of Israel there would be such a situation… This is a dangerous reality, and it has to be stopped, and it can be done first of all by making clear to every rioter that his house will be boarded up, that he will be expelled... They have to stop threatening policemen: I can tell you that even before it releases its findings, the Ohr Commission [investigating the riots and the police response that led to the killing of 13 Arabs] has caused tremendous damage. There have been cases where Arabs have grabbed lands, and the police were afraid to take action; these things are well known…"
Arutz-7 also spoke today with Carmiel Mayor Adi Eldar; Carmiel is less than five kilometers to the east of the hometown of the Bakri family, Bea'na. Asked how he feels about the news of the involvement of his neighbors in the terrorist massacre at Meiron, Eldar said,
"I feel betrayed, and I feel very uncomfortable… Several years ago, [former U.S. Secretary of State] James Baker came here, and I stood together with him on a mountaintop overlooking the area, and I told him how Jews and Arabs live here in peace together, a fine example of coexistence… I would like to hope [now] that it's just a small group of criminals, people with no conscience, and that this does not prove anything about the population in general, which is OK and loyal to the State, and I in fact know many of them personally who have fine ties with us."
"Why are you so confident?" asked Arutz-7's Haggai Segal. "Didn’t you see the tens of thousands at the Temple Mount, many from the Galilee, applauding the young girls wearing the green bands of Hamas this past weekend?"
Eldar: "It's definitely true that since the Six-Day War, when the borders were broken through, there has been an ongoing process. This is why I am in favor of a clear and protected border between --
Segal: "Between Carmiel and Bea'na [both of which are in the State of Israel proper]?"
Eldar: "No, don't put words in my mouth [chuckles]. I am referring to a border between, ehhh, the State of Israel of before the Six Day War to, ehh, what is happening. I think that if there was a clear border, then there wouldn't be an influence of Hamas and the other murderers upon the Arabs of the Land of Israel…"