Last update - 00:00 28/12/2006
PM to hold special discussion on ways to combat threats against mayors
By Roni Singer-Heruti, Haaretz Correspondent, and Haaretz Service
Prime Minister Ehud Olmert intends to hold a special meeting to discuss methods for dealing with threats against mayors and local authority heads, after a fragmentation grenade was thrown overnight Wednesday at the home of Netanya Mayor Miriam Fierberg.
The chairman of the Union of Local Authorities, Adi Eldar, said Thursday he believed that "it is only a matter of time until a mayor in Israel is murdered."
Sharon Regional Police set up a special investigative team Thursday in the wake of the attack.
Fierberg was asleep in her apartment when the grenade was hurled at the balcony. The grenade exploded, damaging the pergola and glass panes of the house. There were no injuries in the incident.
A large police force arrived at the mayor's home shortly after the attack and opened an investigation.
Fierberg told police she believed the attack was the result of anger over certain activities the municipality has been involved in recently.
She cited one conflict involving horse farm owners who have taken over wide open spaces in the city, as well as another conflict involving a municipal project to evict commercial stall owners from city streets.