Photo by AP/Lefteris Picarakis
CITIZENS OF A SORT
Israeli Arabs louder than ever in commemoration of "catastrophe."
GIL SEDAN
A
Jewish Telegraphic Agency
Jerusalem
t noon Tuesday, life among Israel's 1 mil-
lion Arab citizens came to a standstill.
For the first time in the history of the
state, Arabs in Israel stood up for a
moment of silence — commemorating Al Nakba —
Arabic for "the catastrophe," which is what Palestinians
call the 1948 creation of the State of Israel.
The Supreme Guidance Committee, the leaders of
Israel's Arab community, chose to commemorate the
event on the anniversary of the official declaration of .
Israel's independence, May 15. To them, the com-
memoration was a way of emphasizing that one peo-
ple's independence meant the other's tragedy.
Gone are the days when Israel's Arab citizens
joined the country's independence celebrations.
They no longer adopt the passive stance of not cele-
brating, but also not spoiling the party.
In recent years, they have made a point of telling their
5/18
2001
24
Jewish compatriots that the
Palestinians paid a price for Israel's
independence as a Jewish state. This
year, they voiced that point louder
than ever.
Commemorating the Nakba was
another expression of solidarity
with the Palestinian uprising that
has raged since September.
He spoke at a symposium held
this week at the Truman Institute
at Hebrew University, discussing
the crisis among Israel's Arabs fol-
lowing the outbreak of the intifa-
da. "The only possible solution
for the crisis is a binational state,'
he added.
That means an end to Israel as
a Jewish state.
Among his Jewish colleagues
who were shocked at the corn-
ment was Rafi Israeli, a historian at Hebrew
University.
He rose up and replied emotionally to Ruhana,
"You Arabs have 22 countries. You Palestinians will
soon have your own state and eventually you will
control Jordan as well. Why can't you accept Israel a:
a Jewish state?"
Indeed, this was the theme this week in Nakba cer-
emonies throughout the Middle East. Fifty-three
years after the establishment of Israel, 23 years after
I A Palestinian youth taunts Israeli
soldiers as he waves a Palestinian
fl ag in Kalandia on the northern
outskirt of Jerusalem on May 15.
I Israeli security forces were on high
I alert Tuesday as thousands of
Palestinians took to the streets to
I mark 'Al Naqba," or catastrophe,
the anniversary of Israel.;-
lfounding on May 15, 1948.
Binational State
As barriers are lifted between Israel's Arabs and their
brethren in the Palestinian territories, another wall is
being built between them and Israel's Jews.
In the last elections to the premiership, only 15
percent of Arab voters showed up at the polling sta-
tions — a huge decrease from earlier elections.
"Boycotting the elections was but the first step to
say that we understand the depth of the crisis," said
Professor Nadim Ruhana, of the sociology depart-
ment at Tel Aviv University.