Israeli Arab parlementarian Zoabi will stand trial for offending police officers

Arab Knesset Member Haneen Zoabi (Balad) will stand trial, pending a hearing, on charges of incitement to violence and offending a public official, Attorney General Yehuda Weinstein said on Tuesday. Weinstein noted in his message that the decision was made following a recommendation from the unit for special assignments, that handles cases sensitive in terms of freedom of expression.

Zoabi

The incident for which Zoabi is expected to stand trial occurred last July, two days before Operation Protective Edge officially began. Zoabi allegedly offended Arab police officers that represented the government in a hearing at the Nazareth Magistrate’s Court.
The police sought to extend the remand of suspects detained for disturbing the peace in Nazareth following the murder of Mohammed Abu Khdeir in Jerusalem, and clashing with police officers. According to suspicions, Zoabi raised her voice and called the Arab police officers traitors. Later, after a lawyer shook one of the officers' hands, Zoabi allegedly said that no one should speak to them or shake their hands, before yelling in Arabic to those in attendance to act against the Arab police officers who took action against Arab suspects. 

 Zoabi yelled “ostracism, we should spit in their faces, those who testify against our sons and daughters, those who work with the oppressor against their own people, we should clean the floor with them. Clean the floor with them. Not shake their hands, don’t let them be among us, they should fear us. When they’re in the street they should fear us. They should fear the ‘shabab’ that are arrested by the informants that they send, they are the ones who give information to the police that leads to the arrest of our sons and daughters. They stand here, the height of chutzpah. No fear, no respect, what happened? What chutzpah!.”