Israelis Strip Bishara of Immunity

11/05/2001| IslamWeb

JERUSALEM (Islamweb & News Agencies) - Israeli legislators on Wednesday lifted the parliamentary immunity of an Arab colleague accused of inciting Palestinian resistance to Israel in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.The 61-30 parliament vote allows charges to be filed against Israeli Arab representative Azmi Bishara for remarks he made in Syria, and for organizing visits to Syria by Israeli Arabs.
It was the first time that Israel's parliament, or Knesset, had lifted the a member's immunity for stating his political views.
Jewish members of the Knesset said the vote protects Israeli democracy against attack from within, but some experts warned it could set a precedent of limiting the rights of legislators to speak freely.
Israel's minority Arab community, which makes up about 20 percent of Israel's population, is represented by five parties with 10 out of the 120 Knesset members.
On June 10, Bishara told a gathering of Arab leaders in Syria that Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon was trying to drag the region into war and that Arabs should choose ``the path of resistance'' so that Palestinians could carry on with their struggle.
In the audience was Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah, the leader of the Lebanese Hezbollah Resistance group, who fought Israeli forces in southern Lebanon for 18 years.
After the speech, Israeli Attorney General Elyakim Rubinstein began seeking to press charges on suspicion of incitement against Israel.
Lifting Bishara's parliamentary immunity does not remove him from parliament. He is a Christian Arab from the city of Nazareth who claims prosecution will curtail his political activity.
Bishara also faces prosecution for arranging for Israeli Arabs to travel to Syria, which is in a state of war with Israel. Bishara is not banned from visiting Syria because he is a member of parliament.
He admits organizing the trips but said he sees them as a legitimate humanitarian exercise to allow elderly Israeli Arabs, separated from their kin by the drawing of borders after Israel's stormy creation in 1948, to visit relatives before they die.
He denied the incitement charge, saying that although he is committed to the Palestinians' right to overthrow Israeli occupation he has never called for the use of force.
Israeli Arabs are Palestinians who did not flee fighting in the aftermath of Israel's creation in 1948. They later took citizenship.