Asia Pacific Report
Palestinian lawyer Muhammad Dahleh says moves to exclude Palestinian-led parties and candidates from Israel’s elections this month amount to “institutional discrimination,” arguing that the disparity is rooted in Israeli law, reports Al Jazeera.
His comments come as a hearing in the Israeli Supreme Court is under way this week to consider the decision to disqualify the country’s main Arab-majority political lists from the elections on October 27.
“Basically, it’s institutional discrimination, but it goes back to the legislation itself,” Dahleh told Al Jazeera in an interview from occupied East Jerusalem.
He said Israel’s Basic Laws barred parties that denied the country’s existence as a Jewish and democratic state, as well as parties or candidates deemed to support armed struggle by a hostile state, or an organisation designated by Israel as a “terrorist organisation”.
“That’s what they are using now against the Arab or the Palestinian parties inside Israel,” Dahleh said.
He contrasted their exclusion with the treatment of extremist Israeli politicians accused of making inflammatory statements against Palestinians.
“This discrimination, as I said, it’s institutionalised. It’s set in the law itself,” Dahleh said.
Gaza death toll hits 74,000+
Meanwhile, the eath toll from Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza has risen to 74,040, according to the Gaza’s Health Ministry.
Eight people have been killed and 26 wounded in Israeli attacks in the Gaza Strip over the latest 24-hour reporting period, according to the ministry.
The ministry said 1439 people had now been killed and 5052 wounded since a “ceasefire” took effect in October.
Israel has killed at least 74,040 Palestinians and wounded 175,168 since October 2023 when its genocidal war on Gaza began, the ministry said.
