JERUSALEM
Israeli President Reuven Rivlin on Tuesday described the torching of holy places as "terrorism," shortly after Jewish settlers set fire to a mosque in the occupied West Bank.
"Burning holy places is terrorism and should be treated as terrorism, whether the crime was racially, religiously or nationalistically motivated," Rivlin said in a statement.
On Tuesday, a group of Jewish settlers set fire to a mosque in the Palestinian town of Akraba near Nablus in the northern West Bank.
The attackers smashed the doors and the windows of the Abu Bakr Mosque and sprayed racist graffiti on the walls, according to Ghassan Daghlas, the Palestinian Authority official in charge of the settlements file in the northern West Bank.
One of the phrases sprayed on the mosque's walls was "Price Tag," he said, indicating that the attack was linked to a string of assaults by Jewish extremists who have systematically targeted Christian and Muslim properties both in Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories.
Rivlin called for launching an investigation into attacks on Muslim holy sites.
"This morning, I spoke with the Israeli chief of police regarding the arson attack on the mosque in Aqraba. I asked him to lead an investigation as a matter of urgency," Rivlin said.
"We must remember that, if we do not act decisively, we will all pay the 'price tag'," he added, vowing to fight the phenomenon.
"We cannot continue to regard incidents like these as marginal. Rather, we must uproot them. All those who remain silent on such deeds are merely laying the ground for the next such attack," he averred.
A number of Palestinian vehicles and farms were recently torched, while mosques and churches have been spray-painted with racist phrases and the Star of David – a symbol associated with Israel – in retaliation for perceived threats to Israeli settlement expansion.
The latest incidents drew condemnation from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Israeli authorities, however, have so far failed to take any action against them.
Palestinian officials, for their part, say such incidents often take place while Israeli army or police personnel look on passively.
By Turgut Alp Boyraz
www.aa.com.tr/en
