Contradictions of Israel's Arabs

Richard Miron
BBC Correspondent in Israel

Some Israeli Arabs rose up at the beginning of the intifada

Zaki Agbarya is a man used to living with contradictions: he is an Israeli citizen but describes himself as a Palestinian Muslim; he is also deputy mayor of Um al-Fahm in Northern Israel, the most populous Muslim town in the Jewish State.

"It is problematic here to be Palestinian and Israeli. Sometimes it doesn't sound good in the Islamic world," he says.

Israeli Arabs are also viewed with suspicion within Israel.

"We face many problems because the Jewish sector considers us as Palestinians and Muslims."

Um al-Fahm's minarets stand out from amid the houses that cling to steep hillsides in the town. It's home to 42,000 people and, while it's inside Israel, it's also only a few kilometres from the border with the West Bank.

Ariel Sharon has proposed that Um al-Fahm, along with other Israeli Arab towns, be transferred to a future Palestinian state in exchange for Jewish settlements in the West Bank.

Eighteen per cent of Israel's population is Arab. They are the descendents of the Palestinians who remained in the country during the first Arab Israeli war of 1948 - others fled.

Harsh conditions

Despite being Israeli citizens - with full civil rights - Israeli Arabs say their towns, schools and other services are far worse than in Jewish areas.

If you counted the blacks in US this way and called it a 'demographic problem' it would be racism Azmi Bishara MP

They suffer from lower education and worse health, but they also have a far higher birth rate.

Many Israeli Arabs believe that increasing the size of their community is essential to secure their future and gain greater equality.

At the Mangal and Taboun restaurant in the centre of Um al-Fahm, families crowd around tables loaded down with fresh salads and aromatic grilled meat.

Raed Abu Heja is enjoying a meal of hummus and chicken with his wife and four children - not a large family compared to many Israeli Arabs. For him numbers equal power.

"It's important that the population grows because we need to have more representation in the Knesset. When there are more Muslims there will be more representation," he says.

'Racist concept'

The latest government figures show that one in four children born in Israel last year was Muslim. That has caused alarm among some Jewish Israelis who fear they may be losing what they call the "demographic battle" in the country.

Israelis of Palestinian origin typically have larger families

Israeli Arab figures like Azmi Bishara - a Member of Israel's Parliament - dismiss those concerns and resent what he calls the demographic "obsession" of the Israeli establishment.

"What you have here are people who are the original indigenous inhabitants in this country, and are relentlessly counted and counted every year," he says.

"If you counted the blacks in United States this way and called it a 'demographic problem' that would be racism.

"But in Israel, the issue of the Jewish-ness of the State makes it somehow legitimate."

Since we are a democracy it is important for us to preserve the Jewish majority Yuval Steinitz, Knesset member, Likud party

But many Jewish Israelis disagree. Yuval Steinitz a Knesset member for the ruling Likud party says it is important to maintain the special character of the country.

"There is only one tiny, miniscule Jewish democracy and state on the face of the earth, therefore it is important for us to preserve the Jewish State and since we are a democracy it is also important for us to preserve the Jewish majority."

Ariel Sharon's suggestion to include Israeli Arab towns in a future Palestinian state in the West Bank is an attempt to ensure that Israel retains those characteristics.

But most Israeli Arabs want to remain in the Jewish state - because it is both richer and offers more political freedom than Palestinian controlled areas.

Zaki Agbarya says both Jews and Arabs are struggling with each other to improve their position in the country.

"Every side wants his identity and his people to have more rights in this land... Directly or indirectly, it is a competition".

And the struggle for the future character of Israel will continue to be contested between its Jewish and Arab citizens through the generations.