Police Hold Off Protesters As Jewish-Born Woman Marries Muslim Man In Israel

    Maral Malka and Mahmoud Mansour tied the knot on Sunday as 200 protesters made clear their opposition outside.

    Patrick Smith
    by Patrick Smith

    BuzzFeed News Reporter, UK

    This is Maral Malka, 23, and Mahmoud Mansour, 26, celebrating their wedding in Jaffa, south of Tel Aviv, yesterday.

    Ammar Awad / Reuters

    The marriage of Malka, who was born Jewish, and Mansour, who is Muslim, became a local flashpoint in a country where tensions have been running high throughout the conflict in Gaza.

    Reuters reported that Israeli police blocked more than 200 right-wing Israeli protesters from crashing the wedding. They were, according to the report, shouting "death to the Arab".

    Police resorted to forming a human shield to keep the protesters out, it was reported. There were four arrests.

    Malka converted to Islam before the wedding, and was described by protesters as "a traitor against the Jewish state".

    Ammar Awad / Reuters

    According to Reuters, protesters were chanting, "May your village burn down."

    Ammar Awad / Reuters

    The couple's lawyer had tried to get the protest banned, but could only get an order to keep them 200 metres away.

    The group that organised the protest, Lehava, has protested against Jewish-Arab unions in the past, but isn't thought to have turned up to a wedding before.

    Ammar Awad / Reuters

    Several hundred demonstrators and left-wing activists also turned up to stage a counter protest against Lehava.

    Ammar Awad / Reuters

    Mansour told Israeli TV: "We will dance and be merry until the sun comes up. We favour co-existence."

    Ammar Awad / Reuters
    Mansour told Isaeli TV: "We will dance and be merry until the sun comes up. We favor coexistence."

    Mansour told Isaeli TV: "We will dance and be merry until the sun comes up. We favor coexistence."

    Among the guests was Yael German, Israel's health minister, who said that both the wedding and the protests against it were "an expression of democracy", Reuters reported.

    Ammar Awad / Reuters

    The new Israeli president, Reuven Rivlin, wrote on his Facebook page yesterday that "not everyone has to be happy" for the couple, but "everyone should have dignity".

    Ammar Awad / Reuters

    He said that while people might dispute territory, "incitement to violence and racism has no place in Israeli society."

    He added: "I wish the newlyweds health, peace, and joy."

    Ammar Awad / Reuters