Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, this afternoon met Arab Local Councils Committee Chairman Shawki Khatib and several Israeli Arab MKs, who presented him with a petition signed by approximately 250,000 citizens, which calls for the reconsideration of the Attorney-General's decisions regarding the events of October 2000, in which 13 Arab citizens were killed. The petition calls for an outside professional committee top reconsider the Attorney-General's decision not to try any of those who were involved in the events.
Prime Minister Olmert said: "I am pleased to talk with you. It is important for me to make it clear that first of all, it is not within my ability, and I do not intend to change or appeal the Attorney-General's decision regarding the events of October 2000. However, I am interested in hearing your remarks and in giving expression to those remarks that have been made up until now on improving dialogue between Jews and Arabs in the state of Israel. There is no doubt that over the years, there has been discrimination against the Arab population, stemming from many reasons. It seems incorrect and unjust. I took it upon myself to change this and, indeed, I have tried, during my term in office, to find a channel to open a new dialogue, and many actions have been taken to strengthen inter-communal ties, including the Prime Minister's Conference on the Arab Sector. The events of October 2000 were an historic watershed in relations between Jews and Arabs in the country. You came here today to request a re-examination of the Attorney-General's decisions. I will not do so – I lack the authority to do so. But I do have the right to take part in the sorrow and share in your pain, and on this right, I will not give in. I also think that the people of Israel share in the pain of the Arab families who lost loved ones in the October events. The State of Israel is a Jewish state but it is also a democratic state and this means that every citizen – even those who are not Jewish – need to feel part of it. I would like to see dialogue that is not an exception but is part of the daily agenda because it is only thus that we will succeed in living together."