In Israel, lawmakers approved a bill Tuesday that defines the country as the nation-state of the Jewish people, prompting Palestinians to warn Israel is sliding further into a system of apartheid. The new law declares Hebrew the country’s only official language, diminishing the status of Arabic. It also encourages the building of Jewish-only settlements on occupied territory as a “national value.” The bill passed on a vote of 62 to 55, over the objections of Arab-Israeli lawmakers, who threw papers into the air in protest after its passage. This is parliamentarian Ahmed Tibi.
Ahmed Tibi: “The nationality bill is a hate crime. They are totally discriminating against the Arab citizens, against the Arab minority, with racist articles, especially those of Jewish settlements and those articles downgrading the status of the Arabic language.”
