Knesset Committee Votes to Expel Palestinian MK Ayman Odeh in Unlawful, Politically Motivated Move
30 June 2025
Today, the Knesset House Committee voted 14 to 2 to expel MK Ayman Odeh, the head of the Jabha/Hadash political party, from the Israeli parliament, in a process marred by incitement, personal attacks, and clear violations of Israeli law and Supreme Court precedent. Following today’s vote, the final decision on MK Odeh’s expulsion will be brought before the full Knesset plenary, where it must pass by a supermajority of 90 votes.
The hearing was marked by extreme incitement, with MKs from coalition and opposition parties launching racist and inflammatory attacks against MK Odeh and other MKs from Arab-majority political parties. Committee Chair MK Ofir Katz (Likud) stated during the hearing: “In a proper country, Ayman Odeh would rot in prison and have no citizenship.” Committee members openly stated that Odeh's political views were at odds with what they called his duty of “loyalty to the state and the Israeli army.”
The committee voted to take this extreme punitive step despite the opposition of the Knesset’s Legal Advisor, who noted that a single statement is unlikely to satisfy the limited test in Section 7(a) of the Basic Law: The Knesset, and that the evidence presented may be inadequate to establish active support for a terrorist organization—an assessment shared by the Attorney General’s representative.
In response, Adalah’s General Director, Attorney Dr. Hassan Jabareen, who represented MK Odeh before the committee today, commented:
“This is not a legal process—it is a campaign of political persecution. The overwhelming support for this motion, from both the ruling coalition and the opposition, despite the clear illegality of the procedure, is part of a broader fascist and racist campaign targeting Arab political parties and their representatives. This process signals what is likely to come in the upcoming elections: a fierce right-wing assault on all Arab political parties and their representatives. The motion to expel MK Ayman Odeh is a racist attempt to silence him for his principled stance against state violence, repression, and occupation.”
