Basel Ghattas

Former Balad MK Basel Ghattas arrives for a court hearing at the Be'er Sheva Magistrate's Court, April 9, 2017. (Yehuda Peretz/POOL)

Palestinian MK released from prison after two-year sentence

Ghattas served a two-year sentence for smuggling cellphones to Palestinian political prisoners. ‘The conditions that Palestinian prisoners face are a central tool the occupation uses to reinforce itself.’ Former Balad MK Basel Ghattas was released from prison Monday morning after serving two years for smuggling cellphones to Palestinian political prisoners in Israel. Although his family…

By Oren Ziv May 27, 2019

Joint List MK Basel Ghattas is brought to court for a remand on his arrest at the Rishon Lezion Magistrate's Court, December 27, 2016. (Yair Sagi/Flash90)

In bid to expel Arab MK, Israel manages to break its own record

MK Basel Ghattas will serve two years for smuggling cellphones to Palestinian security prisoners. That’s a longer sentence than the one handed down to an Elor Azaria, who executed an incapacitated Palestinian. Congratulations are in order to the attorney general and the Knesset for the latest Arab they managed be put up on the cross.…

By Orly Noy March 18, 2017

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at an event honoring firefighters and first responders, Haifa, December 26, 2015. (Kobi Gideon/GPO CC 2.0)

When some are more equal than others before the law

The differing approaches to suspected law-breaking by Netanyahu and Palestinian MK Basel Ghattas expose just how selective the rule of law in Israel really is. Law is a deceptive concept. We like to take pride in being “law-abiding citizens,” and so tend to reject and condemn members of our community who have broken the law.…

By Orly Noy January 14, 2017

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Joint List MK Basel Ghattas seen at the weekly Joint List meeting at the Knesset, Jerusalem, February 8, 2016. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

Bid to expel Arab Knesset member an ominous sign of what’s to come

After a year in which the government incited against Arab society and the media pandered to the Right’s agenda, the attempt to expel Joint List MK Basel Ghattas points to a worrying future. By Abed Abu Shehada When the Knesset passed the so-called “expulsion law” last summer, widely seen as targeting Arab lawmakers, many believed…

By Haokets December 22, 2016

Arab youth clash with Israeli riot police in Kafr Kanna, Israel, November 8, 2014. The protests took place after an Arab man from the village was shot and killed by Israeli policemen. (Photo: Oren Ziv/Activestills.org)

Justice unlikely in deadly Kafr Kanna police shooting

Clashes break out in the town in northern Israel as police demolish local resident’s home. Knesset member warns of ‘consequences’ if the officer who shot Khair Hamdan isn’t charged. The Israeli Police’s internal affairs unit plans to close its investigation into the officer who was filmed shooting and killing Kheir Hamdan in Kafr Kanna last year, according…

By Michael Schaeffer Omer-Man April 13, 2015