If there was one thing that could prove Israel's democratic nature and disprove the propaganda that Israel is an apartheid state, it is this. A fiercely anti-Israel Arab member of the Knesset blasted the Jewish State from the seat of Israel's democracy, the Knesset floor.
Arab-Israeli Knesset member Ahmed Tibi, a proud and vocal supporter of the Fatah terrorist organization and a former close advisor for Yasser Arafat, gave a speech that was filled with racist & xenophobic comments against Jews. In his speech, the outspoken lawmaker criticized the mass protests against judicial reforms that the coalition has proposed and claimed that a 'Jewish' state contradicts the definition of democracy. Meanwhile, Tibi has been a fierce advocate of a Palestinian State which advocates for Muslim rule and according to the Palestinian Authority President, Mahmoud Abbas, a state where no Jews will be allowed.
Dr. Mansour Abbas: Members of the Knesset who are on the Aljabha, and Ahmed Tibi, a large part of their political performance in the Knesset is representation pic.twitter.com/vtqX1EuRLq
— Ehna.tv (@Ehnatv3) January 11, 2023
"There are other things that worry us besides the judicial system," Tibi said amid the outcry over Justice Minister Yariv Levin’s expected reforms within the judicial system and Israel’s Supreme Court. "For example, house demolitions, planning and construction, crime, murders, the occupation, the killing of Palestinians almost every day." In almost every accusation, Tibi was referring to Palestine and not Israel while failing to mention that those who have been killed were actively engaged in firefights with Israeli soldiers. Israel does have a policy of demolishing homes of those convicted of terrorists acts.
He further added that “these things were not only hidden from the public but they also were not said or mentioned. Therefore, we must say, there is no democracy with occupation. It does not go together. As I usually say about Judaism and democracy, this is an oxymoron; I say that occupation and democracy are also oxymorons."
Ahmed Tibi is well-known for his support of the Two-State Solution, but at the same time continuously advocates for the stripping of Jewish identity from Israel. Essentially, his goal would be to have an existing Palestinian-Muslim state alongside a non-Jewish Israeli one. Palestinian activists often use the outline of the State of Israel with a Palestinian flag within it, indicating that the only solution for them is to take over the entirety of the land.
Surprisingly, despite an existing right-wing coalition supporting the judicial reforms that many citizens have been protesting, he was one of the very few to criticize the very nature of the protest. Even Itamar Ben Gvir, considered by many the most extreme element of the new government, was pleased with the protests and announced in a statement that “Freedom of expression is for everyone, Ethiopian Jews, ultra-Orthodox, and settlers as well. I am glad that the demonstrators from the left came to their senses and did not use Nazi symbols to protest the new government."
Israeli lawmaker Itamar Ben-Gvir was removed from the parliament podium after calling Deputy Knesset Speaker Ahmed Tibi, who is a #Palestinian citizen of Israel, “a terrorist who should be a member of the #Syrian parliament”. pic.twitter.com/Z6g5I2dQbl
— Mohsen Ahmadi (@MohsenA24483203) July 28, 2021
Nonetheless, The Ta’al party leader Ahmed Tibi has been a key Arab-Israeli figure since the mid-90s. His contribution to the Israeli Knesset is respected and an example of how freedom of speech, even hateful speech towards the very state he serves and its Jewish citizens, is highly tolerated and supported by Knesset laws.
