Israeli Arabs caught between solidarity and hard place

Like most Arab villages in northern Israel, Majdel Krum residents now find themselves at odds with their newfound status of a community being bombarded by rockets fired by their Muslim brethern across the border, about 20 kilometres to the north.

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In a local food market across the street, 25 year-old Mana Muaman recalls seeing the rocket slam into Ayub's house.

'I know they are trying to hit the Jews, but when you see something like that, you feel Jewish,' Muaman says. He seems uncomfortable with the connotations of his claim.

Muaman's friend, Zarkawi Schadeh, 24, interjects vehemently: 'At least now we know what they feel like in Lebanon, maybe it was good that it fell here by mistake, but with the amount of rockets falling in the area, we were bound to be hit. We are frustrated with both sides.'

Both claim the attacks have increased their empathy for Israelis throughout the country.

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'Now there is nothing we can do,' he says. 'We live in a culture of vengeance, it will never end'.

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