Arabs, Settlers Clash in Palestinian Occupied City of Acre

Source: BBC & Reuters, 9-10-2008
Riots have broken out in the mixed city of Acre, reportedly triggered when an "Israeli" Arab man drove his car during the Yom Kippur religious holiday.
The Arab man was reportedly attacked by youths who said he was making noise intentionally, Haaretz said.
The Arab man is reported to have said he was simply driving to a property he owned in the eastern part of the city.
Most of "Israel" comes to a standstill on Yom Kippur - the Day of Atonement - the holiest day in the Jewish calendar.
Streets are deserted except for a few pedestrians, cyclists and skateboarders, during the 25-hour fast which this year began on Wednesday.
"Israel" 's Arabs number about 1.5 million, about 20 percent of the population. They are descended from families that stayed while hundreds of thousands fled or were forced out during the 1948 Independence War.
They complain of discrimination and say the government fails to give the same funding to their towns, schools and other infrastructure as it does for Jews. "Israeli" officials deny any discrimination and note there are Arab parliamentarians.
Relations between the communities are mostly calm, although occasional breakdowns have occurred over the years, most recently in October 2000 when police killed 13 Arabs while trying to halt violent demonstrations.
The demonstrations were launched in support of Palestinians at the start of their 2000 uprising against "Israel's" occupation of the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. "Israel" pulled out of the Gaza Strip in September 2005.
The unrest erupted around midnight local time, with hundreds of people pouring onto the streets as news spread of the alleged assault, Haaretz reported.
A crowd gathered on Ben Ami Street, a key commercial street in the city, and caused "extensive damage" to vehicles and property in "large-scale" Jewish-Arab rioting, the report said.
Police used force to disperse the rioters, it added.
"This is a very serious incident that the city of Acre has not seen the likes of in recent years and we will deal with all the rioters and those who take the law into their own hands with an iron fist," the head of the Acre police station, Chief Superintendent Avi Edri, told Haaretz.
About one third of Acre's population of almost 50,000 residents are "Israeli" Arabs, with the highest concentration in the Old City.