"Racist incidents on the rise in Israel"

There was a dramatic rise in the number of "racist acts" by Jews against Arabs in Israel as well as a lesser but still significant rise in racism against Jews by all sectors this past year compared to the previous year, according to a report by the Haifa-based Mossawa-The Advocacy Center for Arab Citizens in Israel.There were 70 attacks on Arabs or Arab property by Jewish citizens from March 2008 to March 2009, a 10-fold increase from the previous year, according to the 2009 Mossawa racism report that was based on field research and police reports.Most of the attacks resulted in damage to persons and/or property, it said. The latest report includes the October 2008 riots in Acre, where several Arab homes were attacked or burned. About 80 people in 15 cases were forced to leave their homes as a result of the attacks, including some who still had not returned as of March, the report said."We want people to know that racism is getting worse. It's not just against Arab citizens; it's against the whole community. We have racism against Jews, Russians and Ethiopians," said Hanan Yousef, the organization's media coordinator.The report, released last month, documented physical attacks and what it described as incitement and discriminatory laws and practices in the private and public sectors.Most of the victims were Arab citizens, it said. "The war in Gaza earlier this year, and the national elections in February 2009 were the main fuel for the current increase in the incitement against Arab citizens," Mossawa said in a statement.
By Brenda Gazzar
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