President Chaim Herzog received a warm welcome today in Sakhnin, with a population of 15,000 the largest Arab,village in Galilee and probably the strongest center of Arab nationalism within the borders of Israel proper.
Herzog was greeted by applause and marching school children beating drums and waving flags. But he also heard the town’s grievances from its Mayor, Mohammad Ghanaim. His visit was the first by an Israeli President and it was made possible in part because Ghanaim defeated the pro-Communist incumbent in the last municipal elections.
The Mayor supports Israel’s Labor Party, which was Herzog’s party until he assumed the non-partisan office of chief of state. Ghanaim spoke frankly in his welcoming remarks. He said Sakhnin had three major problems: the expropriation of land for Jewish settlements; annexation of part of the village’s land to a Jewish-run regional council; and slandering of the name of Sakhnin by the Israeli media.
Herzog replied, “We are all responsible for the development and security of Galilee. This development should benefit all of its inhabitants.” He urged Arab teachers to explain to the younger generation the benefits of living together with Jews. “We should not look for differences, but rather to the things common to us,” he said.
Herzog told the crowd that this was his first in a series of planned visits to Arab towns and villages. “I am President of everybody in Israel, including the Arab population,” he said.
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