Netanyahu's Neighbours

The only way to get into the Palestinian village is underneath a small concrete railway bridge that only one car can pass through at a time which means the village can be cut off very quickly. There are two police vehicles at the first corner, lights flashing silently, the cops standing around watching anyone coming in and out of the village, watching everyone.

The streets are in bad condition with many speed bumps: it would be impossible to escape from the police in a car without destroying it.

It is called Jisr al-Zarqa and it is the only Palestinian village in Israel with access to the mediterranean coast; where 15,000 people live in an area of one and a half kilometres; where 80% live in poverty. In July, 2020, the Massawa Centre in Haifa, who fight for the rights of Arab citizens in Israel, reported that only 23% of kids graduate high school; that there is high unemployment; that those who work do menial jobs; and that the average lifespan for those who live there is 20% less than the national average.

Like so many Israeli towns and cities, there are many buildings built in the cubic, concrete Bauhaus style, many that need repairing whilst others are practically derelict. The only clean new building is the mosque with its thin minaret.

It is after 10pm but still hot. Older children hang out on the street, their phones glowing in the dark, because there is nothing for them to do, nowhere for them to go; younger men sit outside shabby cafes drinking soda, older guys drink coffee inside. To get away from the heat, scrawny cats lurk on doorsteps or down crumbling side streets.  

The cars are covered in dust, their owners park on both sides of the narrow streets which makes passing difficult and causes vocal confrontations, as do most things involving driving in Israel.

A few miles south from Jisr is Caesarea, a well kept ancient town with a Roman aqueduct, an Amphitheatre and a strategic harbour. It is one of the richest areas in Israel: residents include Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu whose personal wealth has been estimated as between $13 and 14 million.

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He has stopped to offer condolences following a funeral. There is a small marquee with local men sitting quietly on white plastic chairs where the inevitable small cups of coffee circulate. This is the second such stop today, the first one being in Tel Aviv when, after setting off, the sky over the ocean turned the colour of pomegranates.

He left the demonstration in Tel Aviv to get back to Haifa. In the front of the car are two Palestinians, in the back a burnt red English guy and a Muslim woman in a hijab, almost begging the security services to notice.

The speed limit for drivers in Israel ranges between moderate and terrifying. They all drive with one hand, spinning the steering wheel with their palms as they don’t have stick shifts, which also means they can text their friends. Driving is a form of combat and drivers seem to scream

Are you not entertained?

After trying to kill you.

Jafa is the founder of the Massawa Centre. At the demonstration everyone knows him and he moves around, shaking hands, talking and joking with the confidence that natural charisma brings. As he drives, he makes a dozen phone calls. A comrade said that radical politics in Israel has a sense of urgency as well as a sense of chaos and there is a sense of urgency about him too: people continually call him and he gives advice, laughs when talking to some, is stern with others, but like other communists in Israel, he doesn’t stop.

There is a general election soon and he is doing TV interviews the following day, one in Hebrew, the other in Arabic. He is standing for Hadash, the Democratic Front for Peace and Equality, that includes the Communist Party of Israel, or the Maki, in a broad leftist coalition. They are demanding a two-state solution for Palestinians and Israelis; an end to war and state violence; the return of the occupied territories to the Palestinians; and equal rights for refugees.

The two-state solution, whilst being the most logical and fair distribution of land, is looking increasingly shakey as the Israeli army continues to destroy buildings and infrastructure in Gaza and squeeze the Palestinians into a smaller area, forcing many to flee.