Israel bans lawmaker, threatens to take away citizenship over controversial comments

The Israeli Knesset, equivalent to a parliament, has banned an Arab member from participating in the body because of something she said.

The Jerusalem Post reports that the member of Knesset is Haneen Zoabi. The ban is for six months. She will be allowed to vote, but not participate in any other Knesset events or functions. Because the Knesset is set to go to recess shortly, the ban will be in place until February 1, 2015.

The ban prevents Zoabi from making speeches, starting debates, or submitting parliamentary questions, according to Jerusalem Post.

Israel often touts itself as the only democracy in the Middle East to justify the United States' continued support.

In a different Jerusalem Post article about the incident, a number of her fellow MKs called her a terrorist and approved of legal action being taken against an individual for something they said.

One MK even submitted a law that would make it illegal for MKs to express support for people or groups with which the Israeli government is in conflict. It also called for stripping those MKs of their Israeli citizenship. 

A poll about that question found that 89 percent of Israelis believe that Zoabi's citizenship should be revoked for her statements, according to Jerusalem Post.  

The controversy centered on comments Zoabi made in the Knesset. She said that the Palestinians who had abducted and murdered three Israeli teens as they hitchhiked home from an illegal Israeli settlement in the West Bank were not terrorists.

While this is clearly an offensive and false statement, the criminalization of speech by an elected member of the government, and the threat of revoking that member's citizenship is a worrying sign about the health of Israeli democracy. Especially, when it has such wide support among the general population.

Zoabi responded to the limitation of her right to free expression by saying, "I represent a vision of justice, freedom, equality and an uncompromising battle against racism, oppression, discrimination, dispossession and disenfranchisement...I will not give in to those who are trying to silence me, punish me and take revenge on me,"