Israel to introduce new citizenship requirement

At the moment, anyone adopting Israeli citizenship declares that they will be “a loyal citizen of the State of Israel” in the ceremony before they get their passport. That is about to change in a very significant way. From Sunday, they must add, “a Jewish and democratic state”.

At the same time, the government will now refuse to issue permits to anyone born or living in Gaza allowing them to enter Israel. At a stroke, this “democratic state” will be prohibiting Gaza’s Palestinian refugees from ever returning to their land inside what is now called Israel. This is despite the fact that the refugees have every right in international law to return to the homes from which they were driven. The reason given by Israel is that “the Gaza Strip region continues to constitute a security threat to Israel and its citizens”.

Source: Sama