(Times of Israel) Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon insisted Wednesday that a pilot plan he initiated which would have prevented Palestinians from traveling on buses with Israelis into the West Bank does not amount to segregation, and was justified on security grounds. "There is no separation between Arabs and Jews on public transportation," Ya'alon said. "Every state has the right, and particularly in our delicate security situation, to check those who are coming in and out. This is what it is, and nothing more." At a Knesset hearing last October, Ya'alon cited a State Comptroller report criticizing lack of Israeli oversight on illegal Palestinian day laborers entering the country. Ya'alon said at the time, "You don't have to be a security expert to realize that when you have 20 Arabs in a bus driven by a Jew, and maybe two or three other [Jewish] passengers...you are guaranteed a terror attack."
2015-05-21 00:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive