Likud mulls changing much-criticized discrimination clause in nation-state bill

Likud is reportedly discussing amending a much-criticized clause in the nation-state bill that would make it legal for small towns to discriminate in accepting new residents, a clause seen as advanced by the far-right, which is intended to allow Jewish-only towns in mixed areas of the country, such as the Galilee.

The clause, 7B in the latest version of the bill, was slammed by President Reuven Rivlin on Tuesday in a rare criticism by the nation’s figurehead of a piece of pending legislation.

According to Hadashot television news, Likud is reportedly considering changing the text to a sentence that merely acknowledges the international community’s recognition of the right to Jewish settlement in the land “under Israel’s control” — a phrasing that the far-right sees as anchoring the right to Israeli settlement in the West Bank in a basic law.