Elections committee rejects calls to disqualify extremist Otzma Yehudit

The Central Elections Committee rejects several left-wing petitions to disqualify the extremist Otzma Yehudit party from running in the September elections.

In its decision, the committee, led by a Supreme Court justice and made up of representatives of the outgoing Knesset’s political factions, agreed with Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit, who recommended against disqualifying the party as a whole.

The committee now turns to debating petitions urging it to disqualify three of the party’s leaders, Itamar Ben Gvir, Baruch Marzel and Bentzi Gopstein.

Mandelblit earlier this week recommended disqualifying Marzel and Gopstein for what he characterized as longstanding records of incitement to racism.

The committee’s decisions are not final, and still require the approval of the High Court of Justice.

Otzma Yehudit is made up of followers of the extremist rabbi Meir Kahane. Its members have called for the forced expulsion of Israel’s Arabs from the country and have held violent protests outside interfaith weddings.