Lawmakers in the Knesset House Committee voted overwhelmingly to advance the impeachment of MK Ayman Odeh (Hadash), Monday, June 30. over social media post he made welcoming the release of Palestinian prisoners as part of a hostage release deal with Hamas earlier this year. The vote passed in the committee 14-2, including representatives of the Zionist opposition Yesh Atid and National Unity parties with the only opposition coming from Ra’am MK Waleed Taha and Hadash-Ta’al MK Ahmad Tibi. The matter will now be referred to the Knesset plenum, where 90 MKs will have to vote in favor to impeach Odeh.
MK Tibi in the meeting criticized his fellow opposition MKs who supported the impeachment. Tibi argued that the impeachment was part of the far-right government “judicial coup” in that it was an attempt to suppress voting in the Arab community and called on fellow opposition MKs not to support it.
Odeh was represented by lawyer Dr. Hassan Jabareen, the General Director of Adalah, the Legal Center for Arab Minority Rights in Israel. Att. Jabareen pointed out the procedural flaws mentioned by the Knesset’s legal advisor as already sufficing to disqualify the request. He also quoted High Court precedent that there to be a “critical mass” of evidence to impeach, which could not apply in this case, since the acceptable evidence included just one quote.
Hundreds of Jews and Arabs protest in his support MK Ayman Odeh outside the Knesset in Jerusalem, June 30, 2025. (Photo: Zo Haderekh)
During the session, Knesset Deputy Speaker MK Nissim Vaturi (Likud) nearly physical attacked MK Ofer Cassif, who was removed from the discussion. As Cassif was making his way out, Vaturi rose toward him in a threatening manner. Knesset security guards prevented the physical confrontation.
“The opposition crossed a red line today. Instead of fighting the racist-Kahanist government – it collaborated with them in crushing the democratic space,” Odeh says in a statement following the vote. “Some of them hate us more than they love democracy. This is not an opposition – it is a coalition in disguise. And this is the final signature on the Nation-State Law.” “They want to subdue the judicial system, silence critical voices, and turn Israel into a messianic dictatorship. Today it’s me – tomorrow it’s you. Anyone who dares to oppose will be next in line,” Odeh adds, calling on the leaders of the Knesset opposition to “wake up.”
MK Odeh arrived to speak to hundreds of demonstrators protesting his impeachment hearing in the Knesset House Committee, saying that its part of a wide effort to silence Arab Palestinian citizens in Israel. Protesters hold giant red flags with the hammer and sickle logo alongside signs in Hebrew and Arabic declaring their support for the left-wing Hadash lawmaker and cried slogans against war, occupation and fascism in Hebrew and Arabic. He asks the crowd what “the real difference” is between the steps to impeach him and efforts to penalize Arab Palestinian students in Israel over their social media posts, a frequent occurrence in the first year of the Gaza war following October 7. “There is only one difference: I am a public representative,” he says. “If I go back on my words, I will be hurting my constituency, I will be helping them bring back the mentality of the Military Government.” He is referring to the system of martial law imposed on Israel’s Arab citizens from 1948 to 1966. “Under the cover of this war, they want to bring us backwards, to hurt freedom of expression that we over the course of many years struggled to expand,” he charges.
Two parliamentary factions in the Knesset, Ra’am and Hadash-Ta’al announced on Sunday that they would boycott a meeting between the heads of their fellow opposition parties due to some of their members’ support for the impeachment of Hadash-Ta’al chairman MK Ayman Odeh. They announced the boycott “in protest of the cooperation between opposition factions and Likud, Religious Zionism, and Otzma Yehudit — aimed at ousting MK Odeh over a tweet.” According to them, “this constitutes political persecution and a crossing of a moral red line: Instead of defending freedom of expression, most opposition factions are joining the extremist coalition — including Likud, Religious Zionism, Otzma Yehudit, and other coalition members — in an effort to silence Arab elected officials. We will not be complicit.”
Also, on Sunday evening, hundreds demonstrated at the Armenian Genocide Square in the German Colony in Haifa, in protest of the far-right coalition’s attempt to oust MK Odeh from the Knesset. The demonstrators, including former MKs, council members and elected officials, attacked the far-right coalition. The event, which was held in the open space on Ben Gurion Boulevard, was supposed to be held at a nearby nursery. However, following threats by fascists activists that “public events should not be held at the nursery,” the organizers moved to the Armenian Genocide Square.
In a speech he gave during the demonstration, Odeh sharply attacked both the coalition and the Zionist opposition. “The opposition is weak,” he said, “We are now facing fascists, and this is not the time to make unclear statements.” Odeh repeated his words that he was happy about the release of the hostages and prisoners, and emphasized that his statements were in line with international law. According to him, “The fascist right is using the war to scare the Arabs and anti-occupation activists and take us back decades. We will not allow this.” Dr. Ilan Saban of the Faculty of Law at the University of Haifa said that in his opinion the entire move is part of a broader struggle by the coalition against the judicial system and the Arab Palestinian community. Another vigil was held Sunday evening in New York with the participation of Jewish progressive activists and Israelis.
