Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir calls it “governance.” MK Zvi Sukkot sometimes wraps his visits in the respectable language of “parliamentary oversight.” Almog Cohen, too, has taken part in one of these tours that ended in confrontation.

But when politicians enter Arab towns in order to provoke residents, manufacture a confrontation and return home with footage for their political base, there is nothing legitimate about it. Arab local leaders should say so clearly, and Arab citizens need to learn how not to give these provocateurs exactly what they came looking for.

The method is fairly simple. A politician enters an Arab community accompanied by a large security detail, cameras and, sometimes, police forces. He announces that he has come to restore “governance,” investigate “incitement” or exercise “parliamentary oversight.” He says what needs to be said to make sure the message gets across. Residents, understandably, become angry. Someone shouts at the politician. The politician shouts back. And soon enough, the whole encounter has been edited and distributed by the provocateur’s social-media team.

We have seen this pattern repeatedly in recent months. Ben-Gvir has conducted a series of so-called “governance tours” in Arab communities. Sukkot has repeatedly visited Arab towns and schools, in some cases under the auspices of his position as chairman of the Knesset Education Committee.........

© The Times of Israel (Blogs)