1948 Palestinians call for general strike over growing gun violence and Israel's 'security neglect'

Palestinians inside Israel's 1948 boundaries have called for a general strike on Tuesday, 5 September, to protest against gun violence in the Palestinian community in Israel.

The strike was called on by the "Follow-up committee", a civil society leadership body for Palestinians in Israel. The committee called for a general strike following a meeting in the city of Kufr Qara in the north, where three Palestinians were killed by gun violence last week.

The call to the strike comes after a spike in the number of gun violence victims among Palestinians in Israel in recent weeks.

On Saturday, gunmen shot and killed a newly-married Palestinian in his late twenties and a 14-year-old Palestinian teenager in Kufr Qara. Later the same day, gunmen shot and killed Kufr Qara's mosque's imam while he was attending one of the earlier victim's funeral.

The High Follow-Up Arab Committee has announced that the upcoming Tuesday will be a day of general strike in all cities, towns and villages in Israel.
The strike comes in protest of rampant crime and the reluctance of the Israeli Police to fight crime and prosecute criminal gangs pic.twitter.com/Dx5N9oHfjw

— Sarah 🇵🇸 (@Al_Kofiya) September 3, 2023

Mohammad Baraka, president of the "Follow-up committee", claimed that "the government of Israel and its branches are the ones behind what is happening in our community" during the committee's public meeting in Kufr Qara on Sunday.

"The [Israeli] government let crime loose in the Arab community after the October 200 uprising aiming to strike our community from the inside", said Baraka, referring to the wave of Palestinian protests in Israel in support of the Palestinian Intifada twenty years ago.

Many observers describe the wave of protest as a turning point in Israel's treatment of the 1948 Palestinian community, including crackdowns on community leaders and marginalisation of Arab quarters and cities.

"We are living under systematic discrimination between Jews and Arabs, especially when it comes to providing security", Razi Nabulsi, a Palestinian researcher and writer from Haifa, told The New Arab.

Here are some of the stories we're covering from around the #world:

Preyed On by Gangs: Gun Violence Surges Within #Israel’s #arab

155 Arab citizens have died this year in violence largely attributed to organized crime.Some say the govt has not done enough to stop killing. pic.twitter.com/Pj64TAbjvF

— MOHAMMAD JAFAR ABBAS محمد جعفر عباس (@MOHAMMA47949502) August 30, 2023

"Israeli security forces eradicated all organised crime clans from the Jewish community through a long and extensive strategy that lasted several years", pointed out Nabulsi. "None of that was done for the Arab Palestinian community, where Israeli authorities have given criminal clans and gangs safe haven."

"People in the Arab community are tired of insecurity and death", said Nabulsi.

"This is why we expect a large participation in all Palestinian towns in the country", he added.

Tuesday's strike will include stopping classes in Palestinian community schools after the third period. Activities are expected to have a march in Kufr Qara.

"We are tired of crime in our communities; there isn't a single day without a new victim of gun violence", a young Palestinian resident of a town in the Galilee, who asked not to be named, told TNA.

"Everybody knows the gangs, and they're not anonymous", they said. "If a new business opens, the gang men arrive shortly after and demand large amounts of money to avoid being subject to violence."

"The Israeli security identifies a clan or a family who is big enough and gives them a free pass to do business illegally and have weapons until they control a whole area", the young Palestinian said.

"I think that many people will respond to the call, but many others will not respond because many people are afraid to participate openly", they added.

Since the beginning of 2023, at least 165 Palestinians within the 1948 borders have been killed by gun violence.