Palestinians condemn iftar attendance of 'racist' Israeli minister

Palestinians have slammed the attendance of Israel's 'fascist' Justice Minister, Ayelet Shaked, at a Ramadan iftar held by a group of Palestinian lawyers.

Narrated

2 min read

The New Arab

24 Jun, 2016

Shaked has previously called for the genocide of Palestinians [Getty]

Palestinians have spoken out against the controversial Israeli Minister of Justice attending a Ramadan iftar in a Palestinian town south of Haifa.

Ayelet Shaked attended the event organised by the Haifa District Bar Association along with around 200 Palestinian lawyers on Wednesday.

Shaked has previously called for the genocide of Palestinians in a now-deleted Facebook post and has called for Palestinian mothers be killed as she deemed them responsible for raising "little snakes".

The minister has also been quoted on several occasions for her disturbing remarks encouraging assassinations during the 2014 Israeli aggression against Gaza, which killed over 2,000 Palestinians.

"The worst rationalisation I've heard for the Ramadan iftar with Shaked is that she would announce the establishment of a magistrate court in a town in Wadi Ara," said Palestinian Knesset member Basel Ghattas on Facebook.

"This is pure depravity... to trade our basic civil rights for our dignity and pride. Breaking your fast with Shaked voids the blessings of fasting and turns virtue into vice," Ghattas said.

Palestinians took to the streets of Wadi Ara on Wednesday to condemn the iftar.

The dozens of demonstrators waved Palestinian flags and called the lawyers "traitors for sitting down to eat with a racist".

Lawyer Jehad Abu Raya also spoke out against Shaked attending the iftar dinner.

"I am against the fascist Minister of Justice taking part in the iftar. Her participation is not part of her position as some are saying, this was a celebratory event, therefore, it is unacceptable because it legitimises her fascist opinions," said Abu Raya.

Shaked's attendance comes amid escalating tensions in Israel and the Palestinian territories, since October at least 209 Palestinians, 32 Israelis, two Americans, an Eritrean and a Sudanese have been killed.

Israeli authorities claim most of the Palestinians were killed as they carried out knife, gun or car-ramming attacks.

On Thursday, thousands of Palestinian mourners took part in the funeral of a 15-year-old boy who was shot dead by Israeli soldiers who claim they thought he was a stone thrower.