海角大神

Israel鈥檚 Ministerial Committee for Legislation on Sunday approved a bill to make Arabic education mandatory for Israeli schoolchildren beginning in first grade.

"When the Jewish population will understand Arabic, the way the Arab public understands Hebrew, we will see better days," Likud party member Oren Hazan, who introduced the legislation, .

The Knesset, Israeli parliament, will hold a preliminary vote on Wednesday on Mr. Hazan鈥檚 legislation, which counts among its supporters the country鈥檚 Education Minister Naftali Bennett.

鈥淚n these days, when terror is on the rise and coexistence is undermined, it鈥檚 important to lower the flames among the nation鈥檚 citizens, and there is no better way to do that than by understanding each other鈥檚 language...鈥� Hazan told the Post.

Arabic an official language聽in Israel, as well as Hebrew. It appears on road signs, public institutions, and government offices, . And though Jewish schools are required to teach three hours of Arabic a week to students in seventh through tenth grades, many don鈥檛, the Times says.

And in cases when they do, it is. The Haaretz newspaper points to an example, quoting a lesson plan that begins 鈥淪tudents studying Arabic ... We need your help in foiling a terror attack about which we have received numerous alerts.鈥�

The lesson plan is part of a joint program of the Israel Defense Forces Intelligence Corps and Israel's Education Ministry to motivate students to learn Arabic, according to Haaretz.

But some people criticize the military agenda in Arabic education, saying that it doesn鈥檛 help foster cultural understanding, but only more distrust.

鈥淔or years the educational system has focused on training 鈥榠ntelligence fodder鈥� for the IDF,鈥� Reuven Snir, dean of humanities at the University of Haifa and a professor of Arabic language and literature told Haaretz.

"I spent years in both systems of Arabic,鈥� says Mr. Snir, 鈥渋n 鈥榢now your enemy鈥� and in 鈥榢now your neighbor鈥� ... and the difference between them is huge.鈥�