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Spend it wisely See the complete line of Dr. Marten shoes SO Dreg Orchard Lake Rd. N. of Maple W. Bloomfield 851-5566 SHOES "Serving the community for 39 years." Orchard Mall Free Refreshments! Win Shoes! here are a great many Arabs in east Jerusalem and the territories who fervently support the es- tablishment of a Palestinian state but would personally pre- fer to live in the Jewish state be- cause there are likely to be more jobs and higher wages in Israel. Where east Jerusalem is con- cerned, this is reflected in the daily crush at the Ministry of In- terior office in the Old City, where hundreds of Arabs re- cently have applied for Israeli identity cards (and thus for Is- raeli citizenship). They could have made their applications from the moment that their section of the city was incorporated into the State of Is- rael after the Six Day War, yet they didn't for fear that they would be branded as traitors in their own community. But with a Palestinian state — or something similar — like- ly to be created soon, they have to act now if they are to remain on the Israeli side of whatever border is decided upon. In the territories, this option doesn't exist. So the only way to acquire an Israeli identity card is to marry an Israeli, and that is precisely what many are do- ing. According to Ministry of In- terior statistics, the number of Arabs from the territories who "married an identity card" dou- bled year by year in the 1990s. In 1991 such cards were issued to 86 residents of the territories who wed Israeli Arabs. The number rose to 154 in 1992 and to 325 in 1993, the last year for which final figures are ava il able. But it is clear that the upward trend continued in 1994 and ear- ly 1995. In the '70s and '80s, it was pri- marily a case of girls from the territories who were "imported" by Israeli-Arab men (at least partially because a relatively low "bride price" was demanded by their parents). Now, however, the situation is reversed, with far more Arab men being brought into this country. For example, during the first nine months of 1994, no fewer than 40 men from Kalkilya — a small town at the edge of pre-1967 Is- rael — notified the local religious authorities of their intention to marry Israeli girls. A rather cynical explanation of this phenomenon recently was Nechemia Meyers is a free-lance writer based in Israel. offered to a Ha'aretz correspon- dent by Muhammed, the pro- prietor of a cafe in the Israeli-Arab town of Taibe. "After all," he declared, "it is pretty hard for an unmarried girl over the age of 20 to catch a man in Israel. But the situation is easier with a guy from the ter- ritories, who is seeking money, a home and an Israeli identity card." Some Palestinians finally are making the move toward Israeli citizenship. Once the marriage has taken place, that card is easy to ac- quire. For instance, soon after Assad Bushara married a Taibe girl, he went to the local Min- istry of Interior office, filled out a number of forms, attached his marriage certificate and under- went a security check. Six months later he was offi- cially an Israeli. When Ha'aretz subsequently asked him about his feelings on becoming a citizen, he replied: "I don't really believe that I have changed my identity. Israeli- Arabs, after all, are also Pales- tinians." Azmi Azam, another former resident of the territories who wed a young woman from Taibe, says his friends "back there" see nothing wrong in his having be- come an Israeli. "Once upon a time, anyone ac- quiring Israeli citizenship was suspected of being a collabora- tor. Now, however, it is seen as quite an ordinary matter. And I'm not personally bothered by the fact that my children will have to stand at attention when the Israeli flag is raised. Flags don't mean anything to me," Mr. Azam concluded. ❑ Publicity Deadlines The normal deadline for local news and publicity items is noon Thursday, eight days pri- or to issue date. The deadline for birth announcements is 10 a.m. Monday, four days prior to issue date; out-of-town obitu- aries, 10 a.m. Tuesday, three days prior to issue date.