Israeli Arabs see through Netanyahu's apology
Israeli Arabs are unimpressed by the apology of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for his words during last year's election, sure that his apology video was directed at European ears.
What caused Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to apologize this week for his infuriating statement on election day last year, that Arab voters were coming out "in droves" to the polls?
In a video clip that Netanyahu disseminated over the social networks, he explained in Hebrew and English to Arab Israelis that his election-day statement had been misunderstood, and that he had referred at the time to one specific Arab faction.
However, because of the electoral threshold law advanced back then by Yisrael Beitenu Chairman Avigdor Liberman to block the representation of Arab parties in the Knesset, the different Arab political factions had to unite into one party called the Joint List. Had Netanyahu forgotten this? And if Netanyahu had truly directed his words to one faction, why did he say that Arabs were “coming out in droves”?
In the video, Netanyahu urged Arab Israelis to take a more active part in Israeli society. “Work in droves, study in droves, thrive in droves,” Netanyahu told them. "I am proud of the role Arabs play in Israel’s success.”
