Despite court approval, police can still cancel Marzel march

"Police has the duty to protect lives. If Marzel and his supporters arrive in Umm el-Fahm without friction, then the march will proceed."

By YAAKOV LAPPIN
Marzel 248.88 (photo credit: AP [file])
Marzel 248.88
(photo credit: AP [file])
Far-right activist Baruch Marzel may have secured a victory this week in the High Court which permitted him to march with flags through the Arab town of Umm el-Fahm on November 11, but the future of the procession is far from assured, the Israel Police's former head of the northern district has warned. In 1984, while serving as the northern police district's head of operations, Cmdr. (ret.) Yaakov Borovsky gave the order to disperse a demonstration held by Rabbi Meir Kahane through the Israeli Arab town. Like Marzel today, Kahane was armed with a court approval to hold the march. But the court's authority is trumped by police powers to cancel the event if the conclusion is reached that the procession will turn violent and endanger lives, Borovsky told The Jerusalem Post. "From a legal perspective, the High Court is correct. The principle of freedom of movement takes priority over the clear risk of violence. The moment that risk becomes an assured outcome of violence, however, the police can disperse the event," Borovsky said. "The police has the duty to protect lives. If Marzel and his supporters arrive in Umm el-Fahm without friction, and no one is there to 'greet' them, then the march will proceed. But if, 100, 200, or 500 activists are waiting on the other side with rocks in their hands, and violence becomes assured, police will cancel the event," he added. The potential for violence seems larger now following the days of communal rioting between Jews and Arabs in Acre, and the recent release of an al-Qaida-style video on the Internet starring masked Israeli Arabs from Acre, who promise to "liberate" Acre from the Jews. "The Acre riots have certainly caused an explosive atmosphere," Borovsky, who is running for Haifa mayor, said. He described the march as a provocative act deliberately being held at a location where passions will be inflamed. In the meantime, security forces are focused on the task of evaluating the situation in the days before the planned march. The Israel Police is keeping its eyes open for any intelligence of planned attacks or violent disturbances on or near the day of the march.