MK Ahmad Tibi of the Joint Arab List looks tense and wound up when he arrives for this interview. The recent escalation of violence on the Israel-Gaza border and the controversial nation-state bill, which became law this week, are immensely troubling to him.
On the southern border, Israel and Hamas have been trading fire, despite a cease-fire agreement. Palestinian terrorists continue to launch kites and balloons carrying firebombs, sparking countless fires in and around Israeli communities over the last three months. Israeli jets continue to target terrorist cells in Gaza.
In the Knesset, meanwhile, lawmakers voted the nation-state bill into law Wednesday, legally defining Israel as the nation-state of the Jewish people – a definition that many Israeli Arabs view as discriminatory.
Q: Do you think Israel is headed for war with Gaza?
"Even though both sides claim that they are not interested in war, in the past wars have erupted despite calming messages and declarations. Gaza is suffering. Only the complete removal of the blockade will restore calm and bring a new reality to Israel's south. Otherwise, the tension and the crisis will continue."
Q: How will that solve the extreme poverty in Gaza and at the same time put an end to the campaign of kite terrorism that has already laid waste to thousands of acres in the Negev?
"There is a lot of hypocrisy when Israel complains about the tens of thousands of acres that have burned. Israel has been spraying Palestinian land on the Gaza border, destroying crops with pesticides since 2014 to create a buffer zone. Israel also uses pesticides on Bedouin land in the Negev. It's a double standard.
"As for the Palestinian demonstrations on the [Gaza] border – they are protesting against the blockade."
Q: But some of the demonstrators are Hamas operatives using the riots as cover to breach the border fence and infiltrate Israeli territory.
"There were only a handful of incidents like you are describing. And even those who did infiltrate didn't do anything. Nothing would have happened, even if 20 or 30 demonstrators entered Israel because they weren't armed and they didn't even have rocks. The demonstrations were staged by civil organizations. It was only after the faction leaders saw that the demonstrations were successful that they joined in."
Q: Why are you so vehemently opposed to the nation-state law?
"The nation-state law rips the mask off the term 'Jewish and democratic state' that appears in Israel's basic law, and reveals the fauxmocracy that it actually is. The law is an expression of national insecurity that proves all the arguments against Zionism. Perhaps it is also a translation of the verse, 'It is a people that shall dwell alone.'"
Q: Do you think there is a chance that the peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians will resume in the foreseeable future?
"There will not be a peace agreement between the sides anytime soon. All the ministers in the Palestinian parliament support the idea of a two-state solution. In the Israeli government there is not a single minister who supports the establishment of an independent Palestinian state. The most any Israeli leader is willing to offer the Palestinians doesn't come close to the bare minimum a Palestinian leader could possibly accept."
Q: How do you explain the fact that on the one hand you attack the government's policies at every opportunity but also participate in the Knesset's Holocaust remembrance ceremony?
"These two things are not mutually exclusive. This is my way. My political principle is constant – it doesn't change because of this or that personal issue. There is an enormous ideological gap between my views and those of President Reuven Rivlin, for example, but sometimes it's much nicer for me to talk with him than with our left-wing advocates. And still, this never changed Rivlin's positions, nor did it affect my political stance. As for the Holocaust, it is part of my worldview. The Holocaust was one of the worst crimes in history. I feel empathy for Holocaust survivors, particularly those with whom I share a country. I oppose Holocaust denial. We, the Palestinians, are the victims of a victim."
A glass ceiling for Arabs
Q: How do you respond to the claims against your party that instead of focusing on the rampant poverty and violence in your constituency – the Israeli Arab population – you focus mainly on diplomatic and political issues?
"It is a false claim. More than 80% of our time is dedicated to social and economic issues that serve the Arab public. The notion that we focus mainly on political and diplomatic issues stems from the fact that we are invited by the media to talk about those issues, not about our work on the social plane. It's important for me to note that since I was elected to the Knesset, I legislated 14 new laws, some of them universal laws, like the law stipulating that airlines must compensate [passengers] for flight [delays and cancellations]. Since the law was passed, El Al has already paid passengers some 30 million shekels in compensation and Israir has paid 5 million. We've passed many laws."
Q: I heard that Arabs have been systematically purchasing homes in Nazareth Illit recently. Are you encouraging this trend?
"Of course. In light of the land and housing shortage in the Arab communities, and the dilapidated infrastructure there, there is a migration of young Arab couples to Jewish towns like Carmiel, Nazareth Illit, Afula and Harish. In Nazareth Illit today, Arabs comprise 20% of the population already. So while I am still calling for more construction and infrastructure repair in our communities, I am also urging young people to move to Jewish communities and mixed cities. It's completely legitimate and understandable, particularly considering the nation-state law that calls for the establishment of Jewish-only communities."
Q: After 19 years in the opposition, does an MK like you feel frustrated at the knowledge that you have no shot at ever becoming a minister?
"I'm not frustrated. I have a lot of drive. Every day I feel as though it's my first day in the Knesset – I am full of energy and desire to help. It is true that politically speaking, there is a glass ceiling that no Arab MK can break through, but I feel like I still have my strength."
Q: Are you hoping that the Zionist Union will rise to leadership and then, with your party, you can become an opposition block?
"We want to be an opposition bloc. It is important to me to build bridges and influence the opinions of the Israeli-Jewish public. Multi-layered dialogue within Israeli society is important to me. That has been my view since I first entered the Knesset."
