knesset.gov.il
On Thursday, leader of the United Arab List Mansour Abbas rejected use of the word “apartheid” to describe Israel and the relationship between Arabs and Jews in the country, following the publication of a controversial Amnesty International report last week.
The Leader of United Arab List, Mansour Abbas, made history last year by giving crucial support to the coalition which led to the party joining Israel’s governing coalition in the Knesset.
Abbas made the remarks during an online event organised by a Washington D.C. based think-tank, called the Washington Institute for Near East Policy. In a response to a question referring to the widely criticised Amnesty International report that described Israel as an ‘apartheid state’, Abbas answered by saying “I would not call it apartheid”.
He emphasised that he would “prefer to describe the reality in objective ways… If there is discrimination in a certain field, then we will say that there is discrimination in that specific field”.
Abbas said he is focused on bringing Jews and Arabs together to address social and economic challenges: “I’m usually trying not to be judgmental… my role as a political leader is to try to bridge the gaps”.
Amnesty International published a report last week alleging that Israel’s policies toward the Palestinians within its borders and in the occupied territories amounts to ‘apartheid’. Government officials from the UK, US and Germany refuted Amnesty’s description of Israel.
Israel rejected the accusations as antisemitic, highlighting that among other aspects, the report ignores the rights and freedoms enjoyed by the country’s Arab citizens, that make up an estimated 20% of the population.
