MK Ron Katz (Yesh Atid) on Wednesday, February 21, sent a letter to the Attorney General in which he demands, together with MKs Meir Cohen and Mickey Levy from his opposition Yesh Atid Party, that the legal proceedings against MK Ofer Cassif (Hadash-Ta’al) be sped up.

MK Ofer Cassif during a debate at the Knesset plenum on Wednesday, February 21, 2024 (Footage: Knesset Channel)

An indictment was filed against Cassif on charges of “assaulting a police officer” near a demonstration in the occupied Palestinian territories on May 2022. Cassif waived his immunity, he will be prosecuted and the maximum penalty for this type of offense is up to five years in prison, and if convicted, the Knesset member will be forced to resign.

“MK Ofer Cassif should be removed from the Knesset, and it is possible to be removed from the Knesset, it just needs to be done the right way. Cassif must be impeached following the attack on a police officer, regardless of the fact that he signed a despicable petition calling for Israel to be prosecuted for genocide,” said MK Katz. He added, “There is no place for extremist members who harm the security of the state in the Israeli Knesset, it’s a long road, but it will lead to the legally desired result. The eternal nation does not fear a long road.” The letter comes two days after the Knesset voted against impeaching Cassif.

​​In its sitting on Wednesday, the Knesset Plenum voted to approve the Government’s statement, as delivered on Monday to the plenum by far-right Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (Likud). The statement pertained to international diktats regarding a permanent settlement with the Palestinians and the establishment of a Palestinian state. In the vote, 99 Members of Knesset voted in favor of the statement’s approval, versus nine who opposed it from Hadash-Ta’al and Ra’am parliamentary factions.

The wording of the Government statement was as follows: “Israel utterly rejects international diktats regarding a permanent settlement with the Palestinians. A settlement, if it is to be reached, will come about solely through direct negotiations between the parties, without preconditions. Israel will continue to oppose unilateral recognition of a Palestinian state.

Leader of the Opposition MK Yair Lapid (Yesh Atid) said in the plenum: “My party and I voted for this motion, because my party and I are opposed to unilateral measures. But as you and I know full well, there isn’t actually such a thing. You invented it. You invented a threat that does not exist. What are we talking about? There isn’t an official side around the world that proposes unilateral recognition of a Palestinian state.” Prior to the vote Hadash-Ta’al chair, MK Ayman Odeh, said: “There’s a nation that I am so proud of — the Palestinian people. One hundred years of struggle against the Zionist movement, against colonialism, against imperialism. I am proud of this nation for not raising a white flag. The Palestinian people deserve the right to self-determination, to establish their own state in the occupied territories alongside Israel.”

Related: https://maki.org.il/en/?p=31616