Israel's Official Incitement: December 2020

Israeli Official Incitement: December 2020

This report highlights inciting statements made by senior Israeli officials, including parliament members and representatives of the settlers’ movement, against the Palestinian people in occupied Palestine and the indigenous Palestinian citizens of Israel and their representatives in the Israeli parliament. The report also includes various political statements by senior Israeli officials endorsing the Israeli government's colonization and annexation schemes against the land and people of Palestine.

I. Palestinian Prisoners, Martyrs, and their Families

Matan Kahana- Member of the Knesset for the Yemina party (Facebook, 24 December 2020)

“(…) The animal1 (…) will now receive a large salary from the Authority2 and academic studies in the Israeli prison. That way we cannot prevent the next murder. The Israeli government must implement the law on offsetting terror money3 and stop this failure (…).”

Avi Dichter- Member of the Knesset for the Likud Party (Facebook, 8 December 2020)

“Every Israeli terrorist4 who receives a wage from the Palestinian Authority while serving his sentence in prison will not only be an official worker of the Palestinian Authority, but will also lose his Israeli citizenship and will be expelled from Israel after his release! This is the bill proposal that I placed on the parliament table with the support of other members of parliament from both the coalition and the opposition.”

Im Tirtzu organization5 (Twitter, 25 December 2020)

“The organization6 submitted dozens of petitions to the High Court aiming to intimidate and deter state systems from using completely legal tools against the terrorist's family7, necessary tools to deter families from supporting and encouraging their children to murder Jews. Complete deterrence must be promoted.”

Im Tirtzu organization8 (Twitter, 25 December 2020)

“Including a significant punishment for families supporting their terrorist children and their deportation. It should not occur to anyone that such a family9 that intentionally produces murderers of Jews will remain living in Israel (…)”

II. The Indigenous Palestinian Citizens of Israel 

Ariel Kallner- Member of the Knesset for the Likud Party (Twitter, 12 December 2020)

“The adviser10 of the godfather of murderers11 spoke straight to the point: I certainly think about the renewed Jewish heroism at Hanukkah that divides and crushes until today the haters of Israel that you empathize with them very much (…)”

Ariel Kallner- Member of the Knesset for the Likud Party (Twitter, 09 December 2020)

“It is certainly ridiculous that the adviser12 of the person13 who killed the largest number of Jews since Hitler, is sitting in the parliament of the Jewish state. Yet we learned one lesson Ahmad: we have a strong army and a strong country. Therefore, you are crying over Nakba and you will continue to do so for many years to come.”

 III. Additional Examples

Nir Barkat- Member of the Knesset for the Likud Party (Facebook, 16 December 2020)

“I support the bill to regulate the “young settlements14” that will be proposed today in the Knesset. It’s time to correct the horrible mistakes towards the pioneers15 who build and strengthen our home.”

Uzi Dayan- Member of the Knesset for the Likud Party (Facebook, 17 December 2020)

“In the preliminary reading yesterday, we managed to pass the bill of *the quality of life to regulate the young settlements*(…)We will quickly and strongly proceed to complete the law approval in the third reading, because strengthening settlements in Judea and Samaria16 is our national compass.”

Miki Zohar- Member of the Knesset for the Likud Party (Twitter, 16 December 2020)

“The Likud for settlements!

As we promised, we passed today in the Knesset the bill for regulating the young settlements in Judea and Samaria17.

The situation for people living there, without any basic infrastructure like water and electricity, is absurd. I will continue to work on the matter until the legalisation is completed.”

Uzi Dayan- Member of the Knesset for the Likud Party (Facebook, 27 December 2020)

“On the way to the application of sovereignty, the regulation of young settlements and neighborhoods must be completed and the construction in the Jordan Valley in Judea and Samaria18 must be renewed (…)”

Eli Cohen- Minister of Intelligence, Member of the Knesset for Likud party (Twitter, 17 December 202019)

“It is sad that only to collect few votes there are politicians20 that are ready to sell Jerusalem, the city that our fathers have been praying for thousands of years. Jerusalem is united and will always be the capital city of the Jews.”

Eli Cohen- Minister of Intelligence, Member of the Knesset for Likud (Twitter, 16 December 202021)

“Today, I voted in favour of the bill for regulating the “young settlements”. Strengthening the settlements in Judea and Samaria22 is a value with a great importance to our national wing23  and Likud party. We did not take a foreigner land…but our fathers land.”

Matan Kahana- Member of the Knesset for the Yemina party (Twitter, 17 December 2020)

“It is a pathetic attempt to collect few votes from the leftovers of the lunatic left wing who still believes that Jerusalem should also be the capital city of the terrorist state of Palestine. Blue and white party will disappear soon from the political map. The united Jerusalem will always be the capital city of the state of Israel alone.”

Bezalel Smotrich- Member of the Knesset for the Yamina party (Twitter, 17 December 2020)

“Jerusalem will continue to be the united capital of the State of Israel, and only for it, and there will be no place for any other capital of any state24, that anyway will not be established. Even after the disappearance of Benny Gantz25 and his party from the political map of the state of Israel.”

• 1. In reference to Palestinian prisoners
• 2. In reference to the Palestinian National Authority
• 3. In July 2018, Israel enacted a law authorizing the Israeli government to deduct the allowances paid to Palestinian prisoners and families of Palestinian martyrs from the tax revenues that Israel collects on behalf of the Palestinian National Authority
• 4. In reference to Palestinian prisoners who are citizens of Israel
• 5. An Israeli right-wing (non-profit) Zionist organization
• 6. In reference to Israeli NGO Hamoked , a human rights organization defending Palestinian human rights violated by Israel’s occupation policies: http://www.hamoked.org/home.aspx
• 7. In reference to the family of Palestinian martyr Fadi Al-Kanbar, from East Jerusalem, who was killed by the Israeli occupying forces in 2017
• 8. In relation to previous tweet in regards to State of Israel's Policy of Collective Punishment
• 9. In reference to the family of Palestinian martyr Fadi Al-Kanbar, from East Jerusalem, who was killed by the Israeli occupying forces in 2017
• 10. In reference to MK Ahmad Al-Tibi member of the Joint List Party
• 11. In reference to the Late President Yasser Arafat
• 12. In reference to MK Ahmad Al-Tibi of the Joint List party
• 13. In reference to the Late President Yasser Arafat
• 14. A bill proposed by MK Bezalel Smotrich to regulate “young settlements” in the occupied West Bank of Palestine. The bill passed in the preliminary reading at the Knesset on 16 December 2020. “Young settlements” is a term that refers to Israeli settlements that are not connected to basic infrastructure as water and electricity.
• 15. In reference to Israel’s illegal settlers
• 16. In reference to occupied West Bank of Palestine
• 17. Ibid
• 18. Ibid
• 19. The tweet was later deleted
• 20. In reference to Benny Gantz Alternate PM, Minister of Defense, Minister of Communications, MK Chairman of the Blue and White Party
• 21. The tweet was later deleted
• 22. In reference to the occupied West Bank of Palestine
• 23. In reference to Israel’s right-wing political parties
• 24. In reference to the State of Palestine
• 25. Benny Gantz Alternate PM, Minister of Defense, Minister of Communications, MK Chairman of the Blue and White Party