Arab Israeli Politician Calls Reporter 'Terrorist Supporter' at Campaign Launch
Translated & summarized from Now 14 by baba
During a campaign launch event, former Knesset member Sami Abu Shehadeh called a Channel 14 reporter and his outlet "terrorist supporters" after being denied entry. The incident occurred on the day Israel marked the anniversary of the October 7th massacre.
The story in 5 lines · by baba
- Sami Abu Shehadeh called a Channel 14 reporter "terrorist supporters."
- Channel 14 was denied entry to the Joint List's campaign launch event.
- The event's timing coincided with the commemoration of the October 7th massacre victims.
- Abu Shehadeh's own disqualification from the Knesset was brought up during the argument.
- The denial of media access violated a Supreme Court ruling.
A verbal confrontation erupted during the campaign launch event for the Joint List's Hebrew-language campaign, when Channel 14 reporter Avraham Chason was denied entry. Former Knesset member Sami Abu Shehadeh, head of the Balad party, directly accused Chason and his news outlet of being "terrorist supporters." The incident occurred on Monday evening as organizers refused to allow the Channel 14 team to cover the event, a move that contravenes a 2022 Supreme Court ruling requiring media access to politically significant public events. In a video recording, Chason questioned Abu Shehadeh about the denial of entry, to which Abu Shehadeh responded, "Because you are terrorist supporters." Chason retorted by referencing Abu Shehadeh's own disqualification from the Knesset, stating, "You are the one who was disqualified from the Knesset because you support terror, no? The Supreme Court said that. Is Hamas a terrorist organization?" Abu Shehadeh then called the reporter "terror." Host Yehuda Schlesinger commented on the exchange, calling it "irony that cannot crash into our heads any harder, it's simply delusion." The timing of the campaign launch, held on the day Israel commemorates the victims of the October 7th massacre, also drew criticism from the reporter and host, who questioned the "chutzpah and audacity" of holding such a political event on a day of national mourning.