Israeli lawmaker at risk of expulsion for backing South Africa's ICJ Gaza genocide case

An Israeli parliamentary committee on Tuesday voted to expel a lawmaker over his public support for South Africa’s case at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in which Israel stands accused of committing genocide in Gaza.

Ofer Cassif, a member of the left-wing Hadash party which sits in a joint list with Arab party Ta’al, is at risk of an unprecedented expulsion from the Knesset following the motion.

A vote will now be held in the Knesset Plenum, Israel's upper parliament, where a total of 90 members out of the 120-seat assembly will be need to back the vote for it to pass.

If it succeeds, Cassif would be the first lawmaker to be removed from parliament in Israeli history after he signed a petition in support of South Africa’s claim at The Hague that Israel’s actions in Gaza constitute crimes against humanity.

Israeli MK Oded Forer called for Cassif to be tried for expulsion under a rule which stipulates that lawmakers may be removed if they are found to have committed a transgression, including expressing support "for an armed struggle" against Israel.

Cassif, who is the only Jewish parliamentarian in the Hadash-Ta'al joint list, has on numerous occasions criticised Israel for aggressions towards Palestinians, putting him at odds with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's far-right nationalist government.

He was briefly detained by Israeli security forces in 2021, during a demonstration against Israeli occupation in the East Jerusalem neighbourhood of Sheikh Jarrah.

On the outbreak of the October war, the lawmaker said that the Israeli government's "ethnic cleansing" of Palestinians had pushed Hamas to act.

Israeli MK Ofer Cassif has been impeached by the Knesset’s Home Committee for supporting South Africa’s case at the ICJ.

This deplorable move by Israel’s political establishment seeks to silence Israeli Jews calling for an end to the destruction of Gaza. https://t.co/LMjLLwR7CQ

— Peace & Justice Project (@corbyn_project) January 30, 2024

Adalah, a legal centre for minority Arab rights in Israel, issued an urgent statement on Tuesday to Israel’s parliament demanding that the motion be dismissed on the grounds that the case does not meet the criteria of the Knesset’s 'Expulsion Law'.

"The motion to expel MK Cassif from the Knesset represents a grave violation of the right to vote and to be elected, and the right to political expression," the statement read.

"In this motion, the Knesset not only expresses the view that South Africa's pursuit for justice and accountability for Palestinians in Gaza is an 'armed struggle against Israel,' but also targets Palestinian and Israeli citizens' political representatives for supporting such pursuit."

In an interview with Times of Israel on Sunday, Cassif rejected the charges, saying he has been calling "for ending the war in order to save lives."

"So transferring such an anti-war belief or stance into a support of armed struggle, this is really Orwellian," he said.

Palestinians in Gaza say Israel not abiding with ICJ's provisional measures to prevent genocide

The latest dispatch from our correspondent inside Gaza ⬇
https://t.co/uSIuqcfRpK

— The New Arab (@The_NewArab) January 31, 2024

In its ruling last week, the ICJ ordered Israel to take action to prevent acts of genocide in the Gaza Strip but stopped short of calling for an immediate ceasefire.

South Africa's case drew a furious reaction across the political spectrum in Israel and Cassif faced accusations of treason over his support for it.

Even if the Knesset approves the expulsion of Cassif, the Supreme Court could still overturn the vote.

However, the case has further brought to light the deep bitterness in Israel's political sphere over the accusations of genocide.

Israeli President Isaac Herzog has described these accusations as "atrocious and preposterous".

In a fiery two-day sitting of the Knesset House committee on Wednesday, members of Netanyahu's ruling Likud party traded insults with Cassif's supporters, who condemned the motion as anti-democratic.

Contacted by Reuters, Cassif declined to be interviewed, but a statement from the chairman of his party accused Netanyahu's government of taking a step towards a "coup d'etat".

In an interview with the left-wing Democracy Now outlet this month, Cassif said claims that he supported Hamas' attack on Israel, which he condemned as a "massacre", were a lie, but he did say that he opposed the war in Gaza and Netanyahu's government.