Pair of Hadash MKs skip traditional photo in front of Israeli seal and flags

15 November 2022, 2:24 pm

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Hadash leader Ayman Odeh arrives for the swearing of the new Knesset on November 15, 2022. (Olivier Fitoussi/Flash90)

Hadash leader Ayman Odeh and the majority Arab party’s sole Jewish MK Ofer Cassif are refraining from being photographed in front of the State of Israel’s official seal and Israeli flags, shunning a custom for lawmakers ahead of the swearing-in of a new Knesset.

In a video, Odeh is escorted by a Knesset usher to a room with the seal and flags, but waves off the photographers and walks away when they motion him in for the pictures.

United Torah Judaism MK Yaakov Tessler, who is part of the presumptive right-religious coalition, also declined to be photographed but later returned for the photo. According to Hebrew media, Tessler’s office explained that he initially did not see a reason to do so, as he had been photographed in past Knessets.