Netanyahu rejects criticism he singled out Arab minority

After Tel Aviv shooting attack, Netanyahu says that there will be stepped up efforts to enforce the law in the Arab sector in all areas.

By HERB KEINON
Updated: JANUARY 3, 2016 13:30
Netanyahu calls for increased law enforcement in Arab sector‏
Following Friday's terrorist attack allegedly carried out by an Israeli Arab, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu opened Sunday's weekly cabinet meeting calling for greater law enforcement in the Arab sector.
“When we established the government I requested from the ministry from [Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan] and the police commissioner to make major efforts that change a situation that has existed in the country for close to 70 years:  the lack of implementation of the law in the Arab sector,” he said. The Arab citizens themselves suffer there from growing crime, and all the citizens in Israel suffer from incitement, and violence, he said.
Netanyahu said that there will be stepped up efforts to enforce the law in the Arab sector in all areas, including building laws, regulations against noise coming from mosques and incitement coming from mosques, the social media, and the educational system.
He also said there is a need to confiscate large quantities of illegal arms in the Arab sector.
These comments echoed what Netanyahu said the night before when he visited the site of Friday's attack in Tel Aviv, comments for which he came under some sharp criticism for allegedly singling out and speaking out against the country's Arab minority.
At the cabinet meeting Netanyahu said that he will not be moved by that criticism, since law enforcement is one of the keys to democracy. He said that Israel was neither limiting nor focusing law enforcement on one sector, and pointed to the indictments handed down Sunday morning against suspects in the Duma murders as an example.