Knesset suspends left-wing MK for accusing IDF soldiers of committing genocide in Gaza

MK Ofer Cassif on 8 July 2025

Noa Shpigel reports in Haaretz on 10 July 2025:

The Knesset’s Ethics Committee on Wednesday [9 July] suspended MK Ofer Cassif from the Knesset plenum over complaints regarding social media posts in which he accused Israel and IDF soldiers of committing genocide and ethnic cleansing in the Gaza Strip.

Cassif, who has previously been suspended from the Knesset, will be suspended for two months once the Knesset’s summer recess ends, bringing his total suspension time over the past year to eight months. His salary will also be docked for two weeks.

In response to the committee’s inquiry, Cassif argued that his statements were protected as free speech afforded to MKs.

The committee also reprimanded Otzmah Yehudit MK Almog Cohen, who has previously faced disciplinary action from the committee, following four complaints filed against him. The complaints concerned comments he made in which he called Cassif a “traitor” and accused him of representing “the interests of Hamas and the BDS movement” and acting as “a fifth column.”

However, the committee found that Cohen did not violate any ethics rules when he called a private citizen who criticized him “a smug, hypocritical and condescending piece of white trash.” The committee stated that it “disapproves of and condemns the mutual rhetoric cited in the complaint,” but concluded that “this was a reciprocal confrontation initiated by a civilian looking to provoke a member of Knesset or government official.”

Between October and June, 14 ethics complaints were filed against Cassif, and since the start of the current Knesset term, the committee has made four rulings concerning him. In November, he was suspended for six months from both the plenum and committee work.

The committee also ruled that Cassif had undermined “the dignity of the Knesset and public trust in it,” citing a social media post in February in which he wrote that “Palestinian detainees are also tortured and suffer, despite having done nothing wrong.” Cassif responded that his comments referred solely to “innocent Palestinians” and not to imprisoned Hamas operatives or attackers.

Another complaint was filed about a letter Cassif sent to the International Criminal Court’s prosecutor Karim Khan, urging him to indict Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Defense Minister Israel Katz and members of the security cabinet. Responding to the committee’s latest decisions, Cassif claimed they were part of an effort to silence his party, Hadash-Ta’al, for its criticism of the war.

“This is part of a witch hunt to target those who reveal the truth about war crimes in Gaza,” he wrote. “It is a clearly dictatorial move meant to suppress our efforts to speak out for democracy and a just society. This fascist decision doesn’t hurt me—it harms our voters and the values on which we were elected.”

In October 2023, shortly after the start of the war, Cassif was suspended for 45 days from the plenum and committee work and had his salary docked for two weeks after he drew comparisons between the government’s wartime policies and the Holocaust. Additionally, in March 2023, he was suspended for three days after calling Cohen a “Nazi.”

That month, the committee also restricted Cohen’s Knesset activity following comments he made during a livestream from the Knesset plenum. He was barred from submitting bills and inquiries and was stripped of his speaking rights in the plenum and during committee meetings.

The Ethics Committee is composed of four members of Knesset – two from the coalition and two from the opposition. The coalition is represented by Moshe Roth of United Torah Judaism and Eliyahu Revivo of Likud, and the opposition is represented by Sharon Nir of Yisrael Beiteinu and Pnina Tamano-Shata of National Unity.

The latest ruling against Cassif comes amid a separate move to remove from the Knesset another member of his party, MK Ayman Odeh. Last week, a Knesset committee approved advancing the motion to remove him from office. Fourteen MKs voted in favor, while two opposed.  The proposal is expected to be brought before the Knesset plenum, although it may be affected by the boycott of coalition-sponsored legislation by ultra-Orthodox parties. A 90-member supermajority is required for approval. If the motion passes, Odeh will be entitled to appeal the decision in court.

This article is reproduced in its entirety