The #Knesset will vote today on dismissing Joint List MK Ayman Odeh. Three prominent US senators including Bernie Sanders condemned the dismissal effort as an attack on democracy. German parliamentarians and Arab local authority heads also oppose the move. The dismissal requires 90 Knesset members’ support.
Hebrew https://zoha.org.il/138609/
The senators noted that Odeh has advocated for peace, justice, and Jewish-Arab partnership for over a decade, and that the expulsion effort directly responds to his calls for Gaza ceasefire, ending occupation, and a political solution. They warned the move sends a “chilling message” to Palestinian citizens of Israel that their representation is conditional.
Well, the next time someone parrots the tired about #Israel being the “only democracy in the Middle East” line, remind them that democracies don’t expel elected representatives for calling for peace. This is textbook #authoritarianism - using parliamentary procedures to silence dissent and purge opposition voices.
What’s particularly offensive is the deafening silence from U.S. Democratic leadership, the very ones who are complicit in the genocide in Gaza through financing Israel’s war machine. While senators like Sanders, Welch, and Van Hollen find their voices, where are Schumer, Pelosi, and the party establishment? Their absence speaks volumes about how thoroughly they’ve abandoned any pretense of defending democratic principles when it conflicts with their political calculations.
This isn’t just about one MK - it’s about establishing precedent for political purging. Today it’s Odeh for advocating ceasefire; tomorrow it’s any voice that challenges the narrative.
@palestine
@israel
#GazaGenocide #illeberalisme #israel #palestine
#AymanOdeh #BernieSanders
