Israel's Attorney General Backs Knesset Ban for Balad Chairman Sami Abed Al-Rahman

Israel's Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara and State Prosecutor Amit Issar have recommended that the Supreme Court uphold the disqualification of Balad party chairman Sami Abed Al-Rahman from running for the Knesset. The recommendation, submitted to the court ahead of a hearing on Thursday, states that Abed Al-Rahman supported armed struggle against Israel, the basis for his disqualification by the Central Elections Committee.

In their statement, the legal officials argued that Abed Al-Rahman's actions, particularly an article he published on October 8, 2023, the day after the Hamas terror attack, demonstrate support for Hamas's armed conflict with Israel. They asserted that his behavior falls squarely within the grounds for disqualification stipulated in Israel's Basic Law: The Knesset.

The Attorney General and State Prosecutor also dismissed Abed Al-Rahman's subsequent explanations for his statements and overall conduct as insufficient and evasive. The Central Elections Committee had previously disqualified Abed Al-Rahman's candidacy with a 31-4 vote. Committee Chairman, Justice Noam Sohlberg, unusually broke with tradition to vote in favor of the disqualification, citing a lack of satisfactory counterarguments.

In response to the disqualification, Abed Al-Rahman stated that the decision targets the entire Arab community, aiming to exclude them from political life and suppress Arab voter turnout. He vowed to appeal to the Supreme Court to defend their right to representation and political participation, asserting that they will not be deterred by exclusion attempts and will continue their struggle for freedom, justice, and equality for all citizens.