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Police officer and Israeli Arab man killed in home demolition clashes Police officer and Bedouin killed in home demolition clashes
(about 5 hours later)
An Israeli police officer and an Israeli Arab have died during clashes over a court-ordered operation to demolish homes in an Arab Israeli village in the south of the country. A controversial Israeli police operation to demolish buildings in a Bedouin village in the country’s south to make way for a new Jewish town has ended with two fatalities – including an Israeli police officer – amid sharply conflicting versions of what occurred.
Police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said a local man sped toward the forces deployed to the Umm al-Hiran village early on Wednesday as they were securing the area ahead of its planned demolition. He said a jeep raced toward the police, killing officer Erez Levi, 34. Police opened fire at the driver, killing Yaakub Abu al-Qiyan, 50, who Israeli officials later said belonged to an Islamist group. The clashes continued, and several police officers were wounded. The pre-dawn raid by hundreds of armed police on the village of Umm al-Hiran in Negev – regarded as illegal by the Israeli courts – ended with a Bedouin man shot dead in his car and a police officer fatally run over.
Local residents said Qiyan was trying to leave town and only lost control of his vehicle after police shot at him. Qiyan’s brother, Ahmad, said he was “murdered in cold blood,” and Amnesty International called for an investigation into the reports of excessive force by police. Despite claims by Israeli officials that the dead man was a terrorist who had deliberately run into a group of police officers, witnesses – including villagers and Israeli activists – offered a different sequence of events.
“The police are light on the trigger when it comes to Arab citizens,” the Arab advocacy group Adalah said in a statement in which it accused the police of a “culture of lying”. They said the man’s car had been fired on by police before it hit two officers lower down a steep dirt road, suggesting the driver lost control after being shot.
Palestinians have carried out a number of attacks using vehicles against Israelis over the past year and a half, and earlier this month a Palestinian truck driver rammed into a group of Israeli soldiers, killing four. Video footage of the incident, taken from a police helicopter, seemed to show at least one police officer opened fire on the driver as the car was moving slowly. An officer to the front and right of the car runs towards it and appears to shoot at least three times from several metres away. It is at this point that the car suddenly appears to accelerate. What is impossible to ascertain from the video, however, is the point at which the driver is shot and how far he was in control of the vehicle at the point that the car speeds up – and why.
Ayman Odeh, a politician and head of the Arab Joint List in the Israeli parliament, was wounded in the clashes on Wednesday, along with several others. Odeh was taken to a hospital with blood streaming down his forehead. Yaakub Abu al-Qiyan, 50, a teacher, and Israeli police sergeant Erez Levy, 34, were killed during protests against the demolitions, which come amid a long-running dispute between Israel and the formerly nomadic Bedouins of Umm al-Hiran. Israel moved part of a Bedouin clan to the state-owned land 60 years ago but now wishes to relocate residents to a government-designated Bedouin township despite the fact that the village, home to about 1,000 people, lies outside the area slated for the new town.
He told Israel’s Army Radio that he was shot by overzealous officers who were deployed after extensive negotiations to delay the demolition broke down. Witnesses who spoke to the Guardian said they heard and saw Israeli police fire on a white SUV being driven by Abu al-Qiyan before it appeared to roll down a hill killing Levy, finally coming to a halt after hitting another car.
“This is a direct order from [Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu, who wants to enflame the area,” he said. “This is a disgrace.” Michal Haramati, an Israeli activist who was in the village to try to prevent the demolitions, said she heard gunfire before she saw the car coming down the hill.
The public security minister, Gilad Erdan, accused Odeh of stirring up the conflict and lying about what happened. He said he hoped the incident would not spark further divisions between Jews and Arabs in Israel but said that if it happened politicians such as Odeh bore responsibility. “It was about 5.30 in the morning. I heard shooting and then saw a big white car coming down the hill that seemed to be out of control. Then it hit the police and carried on until it crashed into another car which stopped it.”
“He was there to enflame tensions and incite to violence,” Erdan told Army Radio. “He contributed to a very serious event that may also have criminal implications for him.” Isaac Kates Rose, another Israeli activist, was about 60 metres away and said the car had attempted to turn away from the police when he heard the shooting start.
Arabs make up a fifth of Israel’s population. They enjoy full citizenship but frequently face unfair treatment in areas such as jobs and housing. Local residents said Abu al-Qiyan was trying to leave town and only lost control of his vehicle after police shot at him. Abu al-Qiyan’s brother, Ahmad, said he had been “murdered in cold blood”. Amnesty International called for an inquiry into the reports of excessive force by police.
The Israeli government recently vowed to crack down harder on illegal Arab construction following criticism from Jewish settlers, who face a court-ordered evacuation of an illegally built outpost in the West Bank. “The police are light on the trigger when it comes to Arab citizens,” the advocacy group Adalah said.
Last week, authorities demolished 11 homes in the central city of Kalansua, sparking a general strike among Israeli Arabs, who say the problem stems from longstanding barriers to acquiring proper permits put in place by the state. The claims by activists and villagers were in marked contrast to official Israeli accounts, which described Abu al-Qiyan as a terrorist.
Wednesday’s evacuation plans involve a long-running dispute between Israel and the formerly nomadic Bedouins of Umm al-Hiran village. Israel moved part of a Bedouin clan to the state-owned land 60 years ago but now wishes to relocate residents to a government-designated Bedouin township. Micky Rosenfeld, a police spokesman, said Abu al-Qiyan had sped towards the police officer before knocking down and killing him. “Police were in the area to prevent disturbances during house demolitions in the area. As a result of the incident, there were riots that took place in the area that police responded to.”
An adjacent part of the village slated for future demolition is zoned for a new development catering to religious Jewish families with ties to the West Bank settlement movement. Palestinians have carried out a number of vehicular attacks against Israelis over the past year and a half. Earlier this month a Palestinian truck driver rammed into a group of Israeli soldiers in Jerusalem, killing four.
Arab Israelis have risen to prominence in sports, politics, entertainment and the judiciary. But Jewish Israelis have long viewed the community with suspicion, as many of Israel’s Arabs closely identify with Palestinians living in the West Bank and Gaza. Protests against the demolitions also resulted in Israel’s most prominent Arab-Israeli politician, Ayman Odeh, being injured in the face by what he said was a sponge-tipped bullet. Police denied the claim.
The Israeli president, Reuven Rivlin, said the housing dispute must be resolved and urged all sides to refrain from letting the incident spiral into further conflict. “They attacked [Ayman Odeh] and other people – demonstrators – with stun grenades, teargas directly in people’s faces,” Odeh’s aide, Anan Maalouf, told Israeli army radio.
“I turn to all leaders across Israel, particularly in the Arab community, and say this is a stressful and difficult time, and we must all work together and do everything in our power to bring calm, in words and in actions,” he said. “We must find a solution and a plan to deal with this burning national, social and civic issue before it is too late.” “There was no car-ramming attack here. There were no clashes here between the demonstrators and police.”
The prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, and Israeli ministers accused Israeli Arab MPs, including Odeh, who had gone to negotiate a halt to the demolitions, of incitement.
“I ask everyone, especially members of the Knesset, to be responsible, to stop fanning emotions and inciting violence,” said Netanyahu.
“The Bedouin public is part of us; we want to integrate it into Israeli society and not radicalise it and push it away from the centre of our life experience. The police are operating on the ground with authority and nobody has the right to interfere with their mission.”
Israeli authorities regularly carry out demolitions of Bedouin homes deemed to have been built illegally. However, building permits are nearly impossible to obtain, according to residents and activists, who say Jewish Israelis are given preferential treatment.
The latest demolitions come a week after another high-profile police operation to demolish illegally built homes in the Arab town of Kalansua in central Israel, which had already fanned tensions.