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Umm el Fahm - Benign Neglect

(New Republic) Yossi Klein Halevi - Prime Minister Sharon's plan to cede the Triangle, an overwhelmingly Arab area parallel to Israel's coastal plain whose largest town is Umm El Fahm, would mean withdrawing from territory within the pre-1967 borders and stripping some 200,000 Arabs of their Israeli citizenship. The plan has stirred little opposition among Israeli Jews, who share Sharon's anxiety about growing birthrates and radicalization among Israel's more than one million Arab citizens, who form 16% of the population. In Umm El Fahm these days one hears widespread affirmation of Israeli identity, as many residents insist they prefer to live in a Jewish state rather than a Palestinian one.
2004-02-13 00:00:00
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