How Israel's arrest of Islamic Movement leader could backfire
The Israeli right has made the leader of the northern branch of the Islamic Movement, Raed Salah, the focus of its fight against terrorism, but the move misses crucial parts of fighting against incitement to violence.
Politicians on the right were quick to leverage the highly publicized arrest of the leader of the northern branch of the Islamic Movement, Raed Salah, at his home in Umm al-Fahm early in the morning of Aug. 15. They are busy using the event to score points with their electorate, a fairly common ritual by now.
Salah, a former mayor of Umm al-Fahm, was suspected of inciting terrorism on numerous occasions, including after the July 14 attack on the Temple Mount in which three young men from Umm al-Fahm killed two police officers. He praised the attackers at their funerals, calling them martyrs.
One of the first to respond to Salah's arrest was Israel's minister of internal security, Knesset member Gilad Erdan of the Likud. He explained, "Salah headed a movement that was outlawed because of its extremist ideology, which has resulted in murder and terrorism. … He expressed himself in a way that encouraged extremism and promoted despicable acts of violence and murder. That is why I consider him a danger to the public." Erdan shared his hope that "this time, the law will settle accounts with him, and he will be kept under lock and key for a very long time."
Minister of Communication Ayoob Kara also reacted publicly to the arrest, saying that Salah should be expelled from Israel. Echoing Erdan, Housing Minister Yoav Galant of Kulanu called for Salah to be detained for an extended period.
