Jerusalem Cafe Still Employs Arabs Despite Poison Attempt

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This is an old story but given the fact that the recent Arab terror attack on the Har Nof Neighborhood synagogue, was done by Arabs who worked at the synagogue or nearby should serve as a reminder about other dangers Arabs can cause

http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/52643#.VGuwp2czAlo
 
Jerusalem Cafe Still Employs Arabs Despite Poison Attempt
Although its former Israeli-Arab chef was sent to jail Tuesday for attempting to poison the 'strictly Kosher' restaurant's customers, Jerusalem's Cafe Rimon continues to employ Arab waiters and kitchen staff.
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First Publish: 11/11/2003, 6:10 PM


Two Israeli-Arab Hamas members, former employees of the popular Jerusalem eatery Caf? Rimon, were sentenced today for attempting to fatally poison the establishment’s hundreds of Jewish customers. Just a little over a year following the attempt, the ‘strictly Kosher’ restaurant’s policy of keeping Arab workers on staff remains unchanged.

Utman Said Kianyah worked for three years as a chef at Caf? Rimon. Ronen Rimon, owner of the establishment, told Israel National News that “He was a very, very nice man; friendly with everybody and very nice to all the Jewish customers.” Kianyah was sentenced Tuesday to seven and a half years in prison for planning to poison those same customers, causing a large number of deaths.

Kianyah admitted to investigators that he had learned from a Hamas website how to poison coffee and other drinks without being detected. Scheming with a friend he met working at the Hebrew University’s laundry service, he planned to use odorless and tasteless poisons that would strike the victims with heart attack-like symptoms some 12-15 hours after ingestion.

Cafe Rimon was established in 1953 and has had a security guard posted at its entrance since 1997. It has recently enclosed its outside tables, ostensibly to afford better protection to its customers. However the guards and gates would not have prevented the tragedy that almost took place last September.

Jerusalem Police officials subsequently warned restaurant and cafe owners to be alert and suspicious of all their Arab employees. "During these times, this danger exists, and one doesn't have to be extremely wise or forewarned by the police to know that a terror attack of this kind might happen," said senior Jerusalem Police commander Yoram Halevy.

Cafe Rimon employs 80 workers, of which about 10 percent are Israeli-Arab. "There are people who have been working here for ten years and I don't think the actions of one should hurt all of them," Ronen Rimon said.

Caf? Rimon is adjacent to the site of three separate bombings. Soon after the poison plot was publicized, Avraham Feld, a resident of Jerusalem, told Arutz-7 of a disturbing scene he witnessed soon after a bombing near the Cafe:

"Last year, after the explosion that tore apart part of Lunz St. and Ben-Yehuda St. [and killed 11 young people], I arrived shortly afterwards at the Rimon Cafe. One of the things that overwhelmed me was the site of the kitchen staff of the Cafe Rimon in a state of joyous celebration - patting each other on the back, jumping up and down, singing songs in Arabic - it was like at the end of a soccer match when your team wins. They were marching and striding back and forth, so full of energy - it was amazing to me."