May 15, 2007, 7:11 GMT
Tel Aviv - Police in Tel Aviv on Tuesday said they were fearful of reprisals following the murder the previous day of an Arab taxi driver in what was believed to have been a hate crime.
Chief Superintendent Nissim Bracha told Army Radio that police forces had been reinforced in the Tel Aviv area, according to The Jerusalem Post.
Driver Taisir Karaki, a 35-year-old resident of the Jerusalem neighbourhood of Beit Hanina, had his throat slit Monday after being lured to an apartment in central Tel Aviv.
A 26-year-old recent immigrant from France, who along with his brother was arrested after they were spotted acting suspiciously, later confessed to the crime.
The suspected murderer, identified as Julian Sofir, said he had carried out the crime 'because the victim was an Arab,' The Jerusalem Post reported.
The extent of the involvement of the younger brother, 21, was still being investigated, police said.
Arab lawmakers blamed the threats against Arabs in Israel for the Arab driver's death. 'The dehumanization and incitement by the right wing against the Arab population give a stamp of approval for violent attacks of this nature and makes the blood of Arabs cheap,' Army Radio quoted parliamentarians as saying.
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