Take away that man’s citizenship!


October 26, 2016
Sarah Benton

Reports from Foundation for Middle East Peace and JPost


David Bitan, seen at the Knesset in 2015, is demanding the B’Tselem director should have his Israeli citizenship taken away. Photo by Marc Israel Sellem/ JPost

Likud Chairman Threatens Citizenship of

B’Tselem’s Executive Director

By Mitchell Plitnick, FMEP
October 21, 2016

Earlier today, Likud Knesset Member, David Bitan, who chairs the governing faction in the Knesset, stated on an Israeli talk show that he would try to find a way to strip the citizenship of Hagai El-Ad , executive director of B’Tselem. Bitan described El-Ad’s testimony to a special session of the United Nations Security Council on Israeli settlements as “explicit breach of trust by an Israeli citizen against the state, and as such he should find himself another citizenship.”

Zehava Gal-On, the Chairwoman of the Meretz party, described Bitan’s comments as “dangerously close to incitement to murder.” That characterization is important considering right wing efforts over the past two years to incite violence against peace and human rights activists in Israel.

To be clear, Bitan’s threat to revoke El-Ad’s citizenship is mere posturing. Despite the gathering strength of anti-democratic forces in Israel, the country’s laws prevent the revocation of citizenship simply for presenting a case against settlements at the United Nations (which, incidentally, cannot and has not been challenged on its merits). But as another log on the already frighteningly large fire of incitement against progressive activists in Israel, it is quite significant.

Bitan’s actions are just one more reflection of the disdain the Israeli right has for democratic principles. This disdain is fundamental to the case they make against El-Ad. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in his own attack on El-Ad and B’Tselem, said that “What these organizations cannot achieve through democratic elections in Israel, they try to achieve by international coercion.” For Netanyahu and his supporters, the future of the occupation is a matter for Israeli citizens alone to decide, while millions of Palestinians who suffer under it get no say in the matter. That’s not democracy. It is, in fact, as anti-democratic as anything can be.

The same can be said about conditional citizenship. Once, it was Avigdor Lieberman threatening the citizenship of Palestinian citizens of Israel based on their ethnicity. Now the Likud chair threatens the citizenship of a Jewish human rights advocate based on his politics. As MK Gal-On said, “In a democracy, citizenship is a basic right. It’s not a gift given to those who appeal to the chairman of the coalition.”

The United States Department of State has already indicated that they understand the grave threat to democracy that the Netanyahu government’s attitudes represent. In a statement to the Israeli daily, Yediot Ahoronot, State Department spokesman Edgar Vasquez said, “In general, we believe that a free civil society free of inhibitions is a central component of democracy… As we have said many times in the past, we believe that it is important that governments defend the freedom of expression and create an atmosphere in which all voices can be heard. We are concerned by any incident in the world when these principles are under threat.”

A stronger message, from governments and supporters of peace, needs to be sent. These incidents represent a steadily mounting effort to erode Israeli democracy, which is already reeling under the weight of fifty years of occupation. Arresting that erosion is crucial for Israelis, Palestinians and the cause of peace and justice for both.



MK Ahmad Tibi. He tweeted “Why stop at removing citizenship? Why not destroy the home of the B’Tselem director-general? Why not bar his entire family from entering the country, remove his land, submit them to administrative detention, and put checkpoints and closures in his neighbourhood?” Photo from Channel 2 News

Coalition head aims to remove B’Tselem head’s citizenship

“El-Ad’s actions at the Security Council are a blatant violation of the trust citizens must have for their state, so he should go find another country where he could be a citizen.”

By Gil Hoffman, JPost
October 22, 2016

Coalition chairman David Bitan (Likud) is considering submitting a bill that could enable removing the citizenship of Israelis who act against their country in international organizations.

Bitan’s effort comes in response to Hagai El-Ad, executive director of B’Tselem – The Israel Information Centre for Human Rights in the Occupied Territories – testifying before the Security Council in New York earlier this month and urging the UN to take immediate action against Israel’s settlements.

“El-Ad’s actions at the Security Council are a blatant violation of the trust citizens must have for their country, so he should go find another country where he could be a citizen,” Bitan told Channel 2 on Friday.

After he faced criticism for the statement, Bitan shifted his goal from removing citizenship from El-Ad for actions that already took place to changing the law to prohibit such actions in the future, with citizenship removal remaining the punishment.

“I am not trying to harm freedom of expression,” Bitan wrote on his Facebook page on Saturday night. “I did not call to remove his citizenship because of his views on policy. What he did was go to a body that has special statutory authorities and call for action against Israel. This crossed a line from freedom of expression to betraying the state and its citizens.”

B’Tselem spokesman Amit Gilutz responded that neither his organization nor hundreds of thousands of opponents of Israeli “occupation” of the West Bank would be deterred by threats.

“The Palestinians do not have citizenship or rights for nearly 50 years,” Gilutz said. “Now, the coalition chairman, who is the emissary of the prime minister, wants to remove the citizenship of those who speak against this reality.”

Meretz chairwoman Zehava Gal-On accused Bitan of fighting B’Tselem to further his own public relations. She warned that his effort was endangering El-Ad’s life and called for El-Ad to be given police protection.

“Hunting season has apparently opened,” Gal-On said. “In a democracy, citizenship is a basic right. It is not a present granted to those who are liked by the coalition chairman.”

Surprisingly, Bayit Yehudi MK Bezalel Smotrich also criticized Bitan’s proposal, saying El-Ad crossed a red line but that removing citizenship was unacceptable.

Joint List MK Ahmad Tibi mocked Bitan on Twitter, saying: “Why stop at removing citizenship? Why not destroy the home of the B’Tselem director-general? Why not bar his entire family from entering the country, remove his land, submit them to administrative detention, and put checkpoints and closures in his neighbourhood?”

See also:

Hagai El-Ad’s address: Israel’s cunning disguises

Comment by Akiva Eldar in Al Monitor: Paralysed Israel rejects all help

Haaretz backs B’tselem’s opposition platform

Reports from Ynet and Barak Ravid for Haaretz: PA brings in peace groups to make its case

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