On 19 July, Member of the Knesset (MK) Ayman Odeh, a Palestinian citizen of Israel and leader of the Hadash-Ta’al party, was attacked by a far-right mob while travelling to a protest against Israel’s war on Gaza. The assailants vandalized his car, smashing the windshield, throwing objects, and shouting racist slurs, including ‘death to Arabs’. This attack came just days after a failed Knesset motion to expel Odeh from parliament, due to his open criticism of Israel’s actions in Gaza. It also occurred amid a broader reported increase in violence against Palestinian citizens of Israel. Although police arrested three suspects in connection to the attack, all were later released. Following the latest 2022 parliamentary elections, only 10 of the Knesset’s 120 seats are held by representatives of Arab origin.

Sources: The Times of Israel (1), The Times of Israel (2), The Legal Center for Arab Minority Rights in Israel, The National, The Times of Israel (3)

On 25 June, Israel issued a directive banning five international organizations and approximately 50 of their staff members from entering the country. These groups, primarily based in Europe and the United States, work to promote justice and accountability in Israel and Palestine by documenting human rights abuses and supporting international legal mechanisms. The affected staff members were designated as persona non grata. By denying them entry to Israel (and by extension to Palestine, as access to the West Bank and Gaza is controlled by Israel), the directive restricts their ability to document human rights violations, including those allegedly committed by Israeli officials and military forces during the war in Gaza. It also prevents them from engaging with local communities and collaborating with local civil society organisations. 

Sources: Israeli Ministry of Diaspora Affairs, Middle East Eye, Quds News Network, Bhol

On 11 May, Israel’s security cabinet approved a plan to initiate land registration in Area C of the West Bank (comprising 60 per cent of the territory), a process in which Israeli authorities will investigate, decide and record land ownership in the territory. The plan has raised fears that the process will lead to land dispossession among Palestinians, who lack access to the documents and information needed to prove ownership. According to Defence Minister Israel Katz, the move is intended to ‘strengthen, consolidate and expand Jewish settlement in Judea and Samaria [the biblical names Israel uses to refer to the West Bank]’, a violation of international law. It is the first time since 1968 that land registration has been authorised in Area C which, under the Oslo peace agreement, is administered by Israel. The construction of settlements in the West Bank has been significantly expanded in recent years and on 29 May Israel approved 22 new settlements. 

Sources: The Times of Israel, Haaretz, UN Human Rights Office, Peace Now, WAFA News Agency

On 27 March, the Knesset passed a law reforming the Judicial Selection Committee (JSC), the body responsible for appointing judges, in a way that increases political influence over the judicial appointments process and is likely to undermine judicial independence. The reforms increase the number of political appointees on the JSC from four to six, by replacing two representatives of the Bar Association members with a representative appointed by the government and another by the opposition. Additionally, the law lowers the majority required for Supreme Court nominations from 7-2 to 5-4. However, it requires at least one member from both the coalition and the opposition to agree on appointments, effectively granting each side veto power. The opposition, which boycotted the final vote, has petitioned the Supreme Court to overturn the law. Civil society groups protested outside the Knesset against the law, which is set to take effect in the next Knesset term, following general elections scheduled for late 2026.

Sources: Knesset, The Times of Israel, The Jerusalem Post (1), The Association for Civil Rights in Israel, International IDEA, The Jerusalem Post (2)