Israeli Arabs: Fathers and Sons (and Daughters)

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bmayor, Tewfik Zayad. Zayad, a bitter hater of Zionism and the bJewish state, became the focal point of a new upsurge of Arab bnationalism. In particular he led the struggle against land ex- bpropriation (with full compensation) in the Galilee. That bnorthern region of Israel, with an Arab population of more than b50 percent, posed a serious security threat to the Jewish state, band strenuous efforts were made to encourage Jewish settlement bthere. As mentioned earlier, the Arabs seized on the land issue bto call for a general strike on Land Day, March 31, 1976, and in bthe resultant violence in which the Arab population of both the bGalilee and the Little Triangle attacked police and soldiers with brocks and firebombs. Six Arabs were killed.

bAt Hebrew University, Arab students gathered on May 19, b1976, to commemorate the dead Arabs and to shout: “Down bwith the Occupation” and “The Galilee is Arab.” An opposing bJewish group waved the national flag and sang Hebrew songs. bSuddenly, from the Arab side, heavy stones began to fly. Wit- bnesses later testified that the Arabs had parked a Cortina auto- bmobile, license number 755-982, nearby and removed sacks of bstones which were thrown at the Jews. Four Jewish students bwere injured. One, Elhanan Blumenthal, was injured seriously band required a head operation.

bThe leader of the Jewish student body, Ariela Raudal, bit- bterly accused the university administration and President bHarman of bowing to the Arabs. Raudal warned that the pres- bence of 500 Arab students in the dormitories would lead to bbloodshed and that the riot “was only the beginning.”

bAnd the Israeli government response to the clear threat bfrom Arab educational advances?

bIn January 1976 the Ministry of Education released the bfindings of a fourteen-member team of Jewish and Arab “ex- bperts” on education, headed by leftist Mattatyahu Peled (who blater became one of the spokesmen for Peace Now). The team bcalled for reform of Arab education by basing it on the tradition- bal and modern foundations of Arab culture, “stressing the par- bticularity of the national character of Arab literature and his- btory.” There is, clearly, nothing more calculated to instill in the byoung Arab a greater sense of difference and feeling of injustice bdone to him than this program. And, of course, it would be done bat Jewish expense.