Foreign Minister Avigdor Liberman wrote on his Facebook page that some members of Knesset represent Hamas, the terrorist organization that governs Gaza.
The comment came Tuesday, following an Egyptian court ruling outlawing Hamas and shutting its offices in the country.
“We still have Hamas representatives sitting in the Knesset,” Liberman wrote. He added that his right-wing party, Yisrael Beytenu “will keep working to make them illegal here as well.”
According to Haaretz, MK Jamal Zahalka, chairman of the Arab Israeli Balad party, said, “Liberman’s attack on the Arab MKs reveals his true face. Liberman expresses diplomatic moderation to win favor with the Americans, but at the same time expresses racism against the Arabs to win votes and cheap popularity.”
Liberman has been accused of targeting Arab Israelis in his statements and legislative efforts before. Yisrael Beytenu is currently spearheading legislation to raise the percentage of votes needed to enter the Knesset, a move small Arab parties fear could shut them out of the legislative body. Liberman has also repeatedly called for future land swaps with the Palestinian Authority to include heavily Arab areas of Israel.
Get The Times of Israel's Daily Edition
by email and never miss our top stories
By signing up, you agree to the
terms
Help us report truthfully on social media
As a multimedia journalist, my job is to take the quality, fact-based journalism produced by The Times of Israel newsroom and make it accessible across every platform — from Instagram posts to podcasts to short-form videos.
This is how many, especially young people, consume news these days. But misinformation is rampant on social media. Our team at ToI produces accurate, responsible short-form reporting on Israel and the Jewish world.
If you believe in the importance of factual social media journalism, please consider joining our reader support group, The Times of Israel Community. Your financial support is essential to sustain responsible multimedia reporting.
— Gabriella Jacobs, multimedia journalist
Support our work
Support our work
Already a member? Sign in to stop seeing this
You're a dedicated reader
We’re really pleased that you’ve read X Times of Israel articles in the past month.
That’s why we started the Times of Israel - to provide discerning readers like you with must-read coverage of Israel and the Jewish world.
So now we have a request. Unlike other news outlets, we haven’t put up a paywall. But as the journalism we do is costly, we invite readers for whom The Times of Israel has become important to help support our work by joining The Times of Israel Community.
For as little as $6 a month you can help support our quality journalism while enjoying The Times of Israel AD-FREE, as well as accessing exclusive content available only to Times of Israel Community members.
Thank you,
David Horovitz, Founding Editor of The Times of Israel
Join Our Community
Join Our Community
Already a member? Sign in to stop seeing this
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on Google
