Adalah takes urgent action against organized far-right Jewish mob violence targeting Palestinian citizens, and Israeli police brutality & inaction

15/05/2021

Adalah obtains internal communications between Israeli Jewish extremists revealing organized, coordinated efforts to bring masses of armed individuals to cities with significant Palestinian populations to ‘kill Palestinians’ and ‘break all their bones’.

Adalah – The Legal Center for Arab Minority Rights in Israel is bolstering legal action in response to the failure of Israeli law enforcement to stop nationwide organized far-right Jewish mob violence targeting Palestinian citizens of Israel. Adalah is also examining Israeli police violence against Palestinian citizens.

Adalah Attorney Suhad Bishara has issued a series of four urgent letters to the Israeli attorney general and top Israeli police commanders over the past several days calling on them to act immediately to end police and Jewish mob violence and Israeli police inaction against and – in some cases – overt cooperation with or support of this mob violence.

Adalah has obtained a number of internal communications between far-right Jewish extremists that reveal their organized, coordinated efforts to bring armed men to mixed Israeli cities – such as Lod, Ramle, Acre, Haifa, and Jaffa – with significant Palestinian populations.

This series of voice messages (with English subtitles) reveals coordination between Jewish extremists planning attacks on Palestinian citizens in the Ramle-Lod area, and assuring each other that they have the backing of Israeli police forces.

This voice message (with English subtitles) reveals the number of armed Jewish extremists arriving by bus to the city of Lod from West Bank settlements, “dying to kill Palestinians,” and their plans for attacking a specific Palestinian neighborhood in the city that night.

This video recording (with English subtitles) shows armed Israeli Jewish extremists assembling in a parking lot, with the narrator describing the types of assault rifles they are carrying, and saying that all are welcome to join to come “break all their bones”.

In Adalah’s most recent letter, issued this afternoon, 15 May 2021, Adalah stressed that:

Illegal decisions have been made by senior Israeli police commanders that have been “translated into the inaction on the part of police regarding what Jewish attackers are planning and doing, as well police escorts of these groups that allows for the continued planning and commission of hate crimes against Arab citizens… [The Israeli police’s] continued conduct in this manner will result in continued incitement and hate crimes under police auspices”.

Adalah welcomes UN commissioner’s statement against violence by Israeli police and ultra-right Jewish groups

Adalah welcomes the strong stand and critical statement released this afternoon, 15 May 2021 by United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Michele Bachelet, and in particular about the violence by Israeli police and organized extreme right-wing Israeli Jewish groups, including settlers, and incitement against Palestinian citizens of Israel.

Adalah wishes to highlight Bachelet’s particular calls on the Israeli government, “to take measures to stem the disturbing outbreak of violence between ultra-right wing groups, including Israeli settlers, and Palestinian citizens of Israel, in cities including Lod, Jaffa, Ramle and Haifa.” She raises “particular concern [about] the apparent highly organised nature of some attacks as well as inflammatory language that may amount to incitement to racial and religious hatred and violence. Reports indicate that in some instances, settlers arrived in organized convoys from Israeli settlements in the West Bank to join local groups.” She also raised particular “concern at reports that Israeli police failed to intervene where Palestinian citizens of Israel were being violently attacked, and that social media is being used by ultra-right wing groups to rally people to bring ‘weapons, knives, clubs, knuckledusters’ to use against Palestinian citizens of Israel.” Bachelet also stated that, “There are also reports of excessive and discriminatory use of force by police against Palestinian citizens of Israel, hundreds of whom have been detained in relation to incidents of violence.”