Ramallah Palestinian member of the Israeli Knesset Haneen Zoabi says that allegations that she insulted a public servant were ‘politically motivated’. She warned that if charges were pressed against her, it would be a disastrous for the Israeli state. According to the Jerusalem Post, Zoabi says that the ‘wartime atmosphere in Israel’ was to blame for the attacks against her, labeling them ‘racist and fascist’. “I am being put on trial for a tiny, insignificant thing, while ministers and Knesset members who incite racism and murder are not investigated,” she said. In July, during the height of the Israeli assault on Gaza, Zoabi called Palestinian police officers serving in the 1948 areas as ‘traitors’ and encouraged protesters to ‘spit in their faces’. “We should clean the floor with those who are collaborators working against their own people,” Zoabi said. “They should be afraid of our youth.” Since then, Zoabi has been banned from non-voting parliamentary activity for six months. The ban was applied by the Knesset Ethics Committee in response to Zoabi’s state support for Hamas’ attacks on Israel. Zoabi, meanwhile, says she will take her case to foreign embassies and human rights organisations.
