Visiting the relatives of a Bedouin teacher shot dead by police in 2017, Economy Minister Amir Peretz apologizes on behalf of the government for branding him a terrorist, and promises to form a team that will decide on compensation for the family.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu publicly apologized on Tuesday night for the Israeli government’s claim that Yaqoub Abu al-Qia’an — fatally shot by police during the demolition of his home — was a terrorist. The apology came a day after a TV report accused police and prosecutors of a cover-up in various cases, including this one, to avoid tarnishing their name while investigating Netanyahu.
Peretz says he welcomes Netanyahu’s apology, as well as President Reuven Rivlin’s, but distances himself from the premier’s accusations that police and prosecutors only called Abu al-Qia’an a terrorist to harm Netanyahu.
“These are two very different things, and we mustn’t allow them to be linked because that will only harm the message,” Peretz says. “This incident should be used to foster coexistence and mutual recognition between the entire Israeli society and the Arab community in general, and the Bedouin community in particular.”
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