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Uproar over police brutality against Israeli Arab

Israeli passers-by documented border police officers beating an Israeli-Arab youth working in a Tel Aviv grocery store.
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Were it not for the civilians who used their smartphone cameras to document the May 22 beating of Maysam Abu Alqian by Israeli border policemen across from city hall in Tel Aviv, this story would probably not have made headlines and probably not even have been covered by the media. According to Gadi Gvaryahu, chairman of Tag Meir, an organization that works against racism in Israel, events reflecting hatred of Arabs by Jews are any everyday occurrence. These include verbal violence, minor physical abuse and in certain cases even a wild and vicious attack of the kind experienced by Abu Alqian simply for being an Arab. Members of Tag Meir also believe racism and incitement against Arabs on social media have become a viral phenomenon in Israeli society, which is why nationalistically motivated attacks on the streets against Arabs are almost routine.

Tag Meir Forum is an umbrella of some 50 Israeli organizations that identify with the goal of fighting these trends. This week a lobby was launched in the Knesset at the instigation of Tag Meir, which concluded that the multiple incidents of violence against Arabs must prompt parliament to combat this dangerous phenomenon threatening Israeli society.

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