Ramallah: The Joint Arab List in the Israeli parliament announced on Monday that the bloc will demand an investigation against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for incitement against Palestinians living in 1948 areas.
According to Ayman Odeh, who heads the list, Netanyahu will be investigated for incitement against Palestinians after he accused them of deliberately starting the wildfires that burnt through vast tracts of land in Israel recently.
“On behalf of the Joint Arab List, I am issuing a formal request to Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit to probe Netanyahu for incitement,” Odeh announced on his Facebook page.
Over the past month, Netanyahu and several other top officials of his governing coalition have made statements accusing Palestinians in 1948 areas of being arsonists and starting the fires. Far-right Israeli groups and parliamentarians have labelled the wave of fires an “arson intifada,” alluding to a Palestinian uprising.
“If any of the blazes were deliberately set, the arsonists should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law,” Odeh said.
Palestinians living in 1948 areas continue to face what they say is systematic discrimination as a minority in Israel.
In an investigative report on Israeli Army Radio, Israeli fire and police officials said that it was not clear how many of the fires that wreaked havoc across the country had been lit deliberately. The Israeli Public Security Minister, Gilad Erdan, told the station that a total of 1,773 blazes were reported across Israel, and that almost half of them were the result of arson. Fire officials stressed that they could not confirm those figures.
Netanyahu, along with other senior Israeli officials, insisted that some of the fires had been deliberately started, and labelled it an act of terrorism. He pledged to work hard to strip anyone found guilty of their residence permits.
“Anyone who tries to burn parts of the state of Israel will be punished severely,” Netanyahu said last month.
A total of 35 Palestinians living in 1948 areas were arrested since the fires broke out across Israel but two-thirds of them have since been released.
According to the Israeli Channel 2, only two indictments have been filed, with one of those indictments being for burning garbage.
Herzl Aharon, the lead investigator into the fires, suggested that Israelis should downplay claims that the blazes were started deliberately. “We do not know anything. I wish I had a direction to follow,” he said.
During the fires, several Palestinians living in 1948 areas opened their homes to evacuees.
“Our homes are open to the evacuees,” said Ahmad Al Tibi, a Palestinian member of the Israeli parliament [the Knesset], and a member of the Joint Arab List. “It is sad and painful. Let’s join hands to overcome the fire and let’s also douse the flames of incitement.”
Odeh said that the decision to seek a probe against Netanyahu was unanimously approved by the committee of the Joint Arab List. He said that Netanyahu has been a regular inciter against Palestinian citizens, and his statements are untrue and libellous.
“Netanyahu has clearly stated that the real danger to Israel is not the Palestinians of the [West Bank and Gaza], but [the Palestinians living in 1948 areas], and has said that the Palestinian members of the Israeli Knesset participate in protests and strikes holding Daesh flags,” said Odeh.
Palestinians citizens as well as Palestinian members of the Knesset, urged the Palestinian National Authority (PNA) to take part in battling the fires in Israel when Israel asked for foreign help. The Joint Arab List sent several messages to the Palestinian officials urging them to dispatch firefighters to help get the fires under control. Odeh and his colleagues have extended gratitude to the PNA and every civil defence officer who took part in battling the fires.
