Drive Opens for Israel Arab Center

While unrest in the Israeli-occupied territories of Gaza and the West Bank continues, Jewish groups in Los Angeles and industrialist Armand Hammer Tuesday announced contributions toward a community center in an impoverished Arab neighborhood outside Tel Aviv.

At a Los Angeles press conference, Hammer and fellow industrialist Guilford Glazer said they will raise $1.6 million to help establish an educational and recreation facility in Ajami-Lev Yaffo, a blighted suburb of Tel Aviv populated by more than 12,000 Arabs. The Jewish Federation Council of Greater Los Angeles hopes to raise $10 million of the $30 million price tag for the project.

“This center will bring people together,” Hammer said. “It will restore pride and provide education and essential social services so they can have peace of mind and body. Then, and only then, can they hope to plan for the future.”

The chairman of Occidental Petroleum stressed that recent violence between Palestinians and the Israeli army that has led to more than 105 deaths and thousands of arrests was not a reason for the center’s conception, which is conceived as a way of bonding two diverse groups together.

“We will set an example for the rest of Israel and the Arab world that Jews and Arabs can live together,” Hammer said, adding that planning for the 2 1/2-acre complex began two years ago.

Calling the Palestinian unrest a “tragic, tragic situation,” Glazer, a real estate developer, noted that blighted areas within Israel were chosen because “international law” forbids charitable organizations from improving the conditions of an occupied area. Glazer added, however, that Arabs in the Ajami area with whom he has talked are delighted about the project.

Ajami-Lev Yaffo is really two neighboring communities with a combined population of 25,000 people. One-fourth of those are over the age of 60 and economically, the city ranks among the lowest 25% in the country.

Upon completion, the complex will feature upgraded elementary and high schools for the area’s children; recreation and sports facilities, including a gymnasium, swimming pool and outdoor basketball court; a library, and auditorium.