Netanyahu ally Bitan says he would prefer Palestinians did not vote

A close ally of Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Saturday he would prefer Palestinian citizens of Israel not vote in parliamentary elections.

 

David Bitan, chairman of Netanyahu's governing coalition and a lawmaker from the premier's Likud party, said in comments broadcast by Channel 10 television station that it would have been better if Palestinian citizens of Israel "didn't go to the polls at all".

"Ninety-five percent of them vote for the Joint List, which doesn't represent the Arab Israelis but Palestinian interests," he said.

 

The Joint List holds 13 of the 120 seats in parliament and is the third-largest bloc in the legislature.

 

The head of the Joint List reacted on Twitter, accusing Bitan and the Israeli government of "racism".

 

Palestinian citizens of Israel, who make up around 18 percent of Israel's population, are the descendants of Palestinians who remained on their land after the creation of Israel in 1948.

 

Although they are citizens of Israel, they largely see themselves as Palestinians.

 

Bitan was replying to a question about controversial comments Netanyahu made during the 17 March 2015 elections, appealing to his supporters to go to the polls to counter a high turnout among Palestinian citizens of Israel.

 

The premier said at the time: "The rule of the rightwing is in danger. Arab voters are going to the polls in droves."

 

Bitan has also made controversial statements.

 

Last month, he faced criticism for saying the Facebook posts of journalists showed they wanted to impose a "left-wing" agenda in public broadcasting.

 

In October, he called for a rights group chief who condemned Israeli settlement construction at the United Nations to be stripped of his citizenship.