Arab-Israeli MP voices defiance despite Knesset ban

By Abdul Raouf Arnaout

JERUSALEM (AA) - Haneen Zoabi, an Arab member of the Knesset (Israel’s parliament), declared Thursday that she would continue to “speak the truth” regarding Israeli violations of Palestinian rights.

Zoabi made the assertion a day after being banned from attending Knesset sessions for criticizing Israeli aggression against Palestinians and describing Israeli soldiers as “murderers”.

“I didn’t know I had to lie and distort the truth and say that Israeli soldiers kill Palestinians ‘accidently’ or ‘by mistake’,” the MP said in a Thursday statement.

“When Israel bombs entire neighborhoods in Gaza, do they not mean to kill them [i.e., Palestinians]?” she asked.

“My job isn’t to whitewash these crimes but to condemn them,” she asserted, adding: “Anyone who kills children should be prosecuted.”

Arab Knesset members are often criticized by their Jewish counterparts for condemning Israeli army practices in the occupied Palestinian territories and the widespread discrimination faced by Arab citizens of Israel.