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Thousands of Israeli Arabs protest attack
(AP)
Updated: 2006-03-05 08:56
NAZARETH, Israel - Thousands of Israeli Arab protesters marched through the
streets of this biblical town Saturday demanding better protection for holy
sites after a troubled family set off firecrackers inside a major Christian
shrine.
Muslims and
Christian Israeli Arabs chant anti-Israeli slogans during a demonstration
outside the Basilica of the Annunciation, one of Christianity's holiest
sites, in the northern Israel town of Nazareth Saturday March 4, 2006.
Hundreds of Israeli Arabs, Christians and Muslims, marched on Saturday to
protest the attack Friday on the Basilica, one of Christianity's holiest
sites, by an Israeli couple and their daughter. The attack apparently was
driven by personal distress and not extremism, police said.
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The emotional reaction to the attack on the Basilica of the Annunciation
reflected the fragile status of Israel's Arab minority, which has long claimed
it suffers discrimination at the hands of the Jewish majority.
Many protesters accused the government of failing to prevent the attack, and
rejected the official claim that Friday's attack was driven by personal
distress, and not politically motivated.
An Israeli couple accompanied by their daughter interrupted a Lent prayer
service by exploding firecrackers in the basilica, one of Christianity's most
revered sites. The attack caused only light damage, but set off a riot that
injured two dozen people, including 13 police officers.
Police said the man involved in the attack, Haim Eliyahu Habibi, has
financial problems and apparently is not a Jewish extremist. Habibi's Christian
wife, Violet, and their 20-year-old daughter were treated at a hospital before
being taken into custody early Saturday.
Israeli television on Saturday showed footage of a bearded Habibi being
escorted by police with a large bandage covering an injured eye, the result of a
scuffle with angry worshippers.
Late Saturday, a judge extended the family's detention by 15 days. At the
hearing, the parents said they meant no harm, had no hate for Christians or
Muslims and merely sought to draw attention to their plight. Haim Habibi said
authorities had recently placed three of his children into foster care.
"I am deeply sorry. I am not against anyone," a sobbing Violet Habibi said.
"I hope we will be forgiven. Please."
But participants in Saturday's rally dismissed such explanations.
"The Israeli institution is trying to explain the aggression by saying that
anyone who did this is mentally unstable," said Ramez Jaraisah, Nazareth's
Christian mayor. "We refuse to accept any excuse for this criminal act."
Israel's roughly 1 million Arabs hold Israeli citizenship, in contrast to
Palestinian residents of the West Bank and Gaza Strip who live under the
Palestinian Authority. However, Israeli Arabs, who make up about 20 percent of
the country's population, have long complained of systematic discrimination in
housing, education and jobs.
Despite tensions between Jews and Arabs in Israel, violence is rare.
Nazareth, the boyhood town of Jesus, is inhabited by about 74,000 Israeli
Arabs, two-thirds of them Muslim and the remainder Christian.
The basilica is built on the site where Christians believe the Angel Gabriel
appeared before the Virgin Mary and foretold the birth of Christ.
Several thousand people joined the protest snaking through the town's narrow
streets to the basilica.
Police stayed away from the march to avoid raising tensions and the
demonstration ended peacefully.
With national elections approaching at the end of the month, Israeli
officials rushed to calm the fears of Arab leaders. Acting Prime Minister Ehud
Olmert called the mayor after Friday's attack, and Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni
contacted the Vatican to pledge Israel's commitment to protecting Christian holy
places.
Israeli police ordered a review of security at Christian holy sites, a
spokesman said.
Israel's ceremonial president, Moshe Katsav, spoke with Christian leaders
Saturday night, condemning the incident and saying it should not harm relations
among the country's citizens, his office said.
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