MK David Rotem (Yisrael Beytenu) requested on Thursday that the Central Elections Commission bar the Arab party Balad from running in the upcoming Knesset elections.
When representatives of Balad presented their list to the commission on Thursday evening, Rotem, the deputy chairman of the commission, filed his request on the grounds that Balad “supports the armed struggle of an enemy state or terrorist organization.” He also cited calls by Balad members for a third intifada, and the participation of Balad MK Hanin Zoabi in the flotilla that attempted to breach Israel’s naval blockade of the Gaza Strip in 2010.
“It is time that Election Commission and the Supreme Court finally place a red line,” Rotem said, blasting Israel’s “inability to deal with a hostile minority that undermines its existence.”
Zoabi was second behind party leader Jamal Zahalke on the Balad list that was presented on Thursday evening.
In 2009, the Central Elections Committee disqualified Balad and the United Arab List from running in the Knesset elections, but the Supreme Court overturned the ban.
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