Netanyahu threats target Israeli Arabs

TEL AVIV: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has denounced the murder of two people in Tel Aviv by a shooter suspected of being an Arab Israeli, pledging a crackdown on crime in that community.

A man police identified as Nashaat Melhem opened fire at a pub Friday, killing the two and wounding seven others before fleeing. He remained at large late Saturday, with thousands of police searching for him.
“There was a despicable murder here yesterday, incomprehensible cruelty,” he said after lighting a candle outside the pub.
The premier said he had, along with law enforcement, formulated a plan to “dramatically increase law enforcement in the Arab sector.”
Arab Israelis are those who remained in the Jewish state after its 1948 creation, as well as their descendants. They account for more than 17 percent of the population. They often complain of discrimination in various fields, including building permits, infrastructure and education.
Meanwhile, Israel has refused to include a novel about a love affair between a Jewish woman and a Palestinian man in the country’s high school curriculum, reportedly over concerns that it could encourage intermarriage between Jews and non-Jews.
The rejection of “Borderlife,” a novel published last year, created uproar in Israel, with critics accusing the government of censorship.
The incident was confirmed in a statement by the Education Ministry.
The rejection also touched on the climate of mistrust between Arabs and Jews, which has deepened during the current wave of Israeli-Palestinian violence.
The ministry said a panel had debated adding “Borderlife” to the high school reading curriculum but decided against it. Israeli media said teachers had requested its inclusion on the student reading lists.