MK Ahmad Tibi from the Joint (Arab) List reacts to Netanyahu’s apology over comments from Election Day (when he said Arabs were voting in droves and being bused to polling stations) and decides to catch the PM on semantics.
“He is expressing remorse, but not sincerely saying sorry. A prime minister is expected to be responsible both in words and in actions. Netanyahu apologizes, but if it’s Arabs he only expresses remorse,” Tibi says.
MK Ahmad Tibi participates in a panel discussion at the Israel Conference on Democracy, in Tel Aviv on February 17, 2015. (photo credit: Amir Levy/Flash90)
Tibi says Netanyahu will be tested by “canceling the Jewish State bill, which badly hurts Arab citizens. Discrimination is a government policy and equality is a way of life from which the prime minister is as far as earth is from heaven.”
The Jewish State bill, setting out the definition of Israel as Jewish and democratic, was criticized in the last government’s term by left-wing parties and Arab parties who said a draft that was being considered, and which appeared to relegate Israel’s democratic nature below its Jewish nature, endangered Israeli democracy and would hurt citizens from minority groups.
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