Exactly a year ago, near the City of David excavation site in east Jerusalem's Silwan neighborhood, a resident of the Jewish Quarter shot Ahmad Kar'in in the knee with an IDF assault rifle.

The Jewish man left Kar'in to bleed on the road, shot a 15-year-old boy who passed by on his bicycle, and then returned to shoot Kar'in in the other knee.

The case against the Jewish man was closed due to "lack of evidence". Kar'in is walking on crutches and is awaiting another operation. He will remain handicapped for his entire life.

"I was home when I suddenly heard screaming," recounts Kar'in, 39, a neighborhood activist who worked as a driver before his injury. "When I approached I saw a settler aiming an M-16 rifle at my child's chest. I wanted to talk to him, but he threatened to shoot me. He took a few steps back, bumped into the sidewalk and almost fell down. A friend of his yelled, 'Shoot him!' and he shot my right leg. My son ran over to me, crying. Then I heard another gunshot. Someone yelled, 'My leg, my leg'; then he came back and shot me in the left knee."

Police investigators were waiting for Kar'in at Jerusalem's Hadassah Ein Kerem Hospital. He was certain they wanted to hear his complaint, but it turned out that the shooter, a soldier on furlough, had already filed a complaint saying Kar'in had attacked him and tried to snatch his weapon. The Jewish man said he had opened fire in self defense.

Karin and his two young boys were interrogated. He was also summoned for additional questioning sessions following his release from the hospital, but it was never proven that he attempted to attack the shooter.

A few months later, Kar'in learned that the State Prosecutor's Office closed the case against the soldier. He is appealing the decision with the help of Attorney Michael Sfard.

'Level of violence and tension up dramatically'

The faith east Jerusalem's Arabs have in the police is very low. A new report drafted by The Association for Civil Rights in Israel (ACRI), published Sunday, details dozens of violent confrontations between Jewish and Arab residents of east Jerusalem and claims police are disregarding the safety of the area's Arabs and discriminating against them.

Israel Police says the report is biased, but fails to explain the large number of complaints against police stations located in east Jerusalem. The complaints reveal that police are focusing on the protection of some 2,000 Jews in east Jerusalem more than on preserving the basic rights of tens of thousands of Arabs.

Last year, Jamlat Morarbi was evacuated from her home in Sheikh Jarrah. In May she was beaten by one of the Jews who had moved in to her home.

When Morarbi arrived at the "Shalem" police station to file a complaint, she was told she was wanted for attacking the settler. According to Morarbi, the investigator refused to watch video footage of the incident, threw the hospital documents away, and kept her in custody overnight.

Morarbi's son, Abd el-Fatah, 17, was arrested a month earlier after Jews photographed him carrying a screwdriver in his back pocket. "I had to ask people from the neighborhood to come in and testify that the settler provoked my son," she said, "It didn’t do us any good; on the contrary. My son's remand was extended by 24 hours. When I asked the investigator why the Jewish man was not arrested for instigating the melee, he said he was merely following orders."

Attorney Tali Nir from ACRI said the Morarbi case is just one of many. "Police regularly confront the Arab residents, and by doing so deteriorate the security situation," she said.

In many cases, police refuse to hear the Arabs' complaints under various pretexts, such as the absence of an Arabic-speaking officer. When the Arabs return later they learn that the Jews have already filed a complaint.

According to the Arab residents of east Jerusalem, complaints of damage caused by Jews to vehicles and playgrounds are not investigated at all. Those who insisted on complaining said police threatened to arrest their relatives.

The Arabs also claim Jews and their bodyguards deliberately make noise at all times of the day, litter the streets with garbage and harass children and chant inciting slogans.

Several complaints have been filed with ACRI regarding the arrests of minors and their interrogation without the presence of an adult.

"The level of violence and tension in these neighborhoods has increased dramatically over the past year," said ACRI Attorney Nasrin Alian. "Things have deteriorated to such an extent that the residents are afraid to let their children roam around in the neighborhood.

"The residents have lost faith in the law enforcement system after it turned its back on them," he said.