Israeli-Arab lawmaker Tibi hails Arafat at Ramallah rite

Ahmad Tibi

Israeli-Arab lawmaker Ahmad Tibi at a memorial for Yasser Arafat in Ramallah suggested that the Israeli government will soon “propose a ‘death to Arabs’ law.”

Tibi, speaking Wednesday before a massive crowd marking the seventh anniversary of the Palestinian leader’s death, was referring to several bills offered by right-wing lawmakers targeting the left that critics have labeled as “anti-democratic.” He also slammed Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman, calling him “the fascist settler that recently came to my homeland,” Ynet reported.

Tibi, a former adviser to Arafat, referred to the late PLO chief as “the father of our homeland.”

Several Israeli lawmakers will likely file complaints against Tibi for his appearance in Ramallah, a West Bank city that is off-limits for Israeli citizens. Many lawmakers had filed similar complaints against Tibi, a member of the United Arab List-Ta’al Party, when he flew with the Palestinian Authority delegation on Abbas’ plane to the United Nations in September in order to submit a bid for Palestinian statehood.