Netanyahu apologises to Arab citizens for election remarks

Benjamin Netanyahu expressed his apologies to Israel’s Arab citizens on Monday for the statements he made during his election campaign. The Israeli prime minister admitted that his comments resulted in him “hurting the feelings of some of the citizens of the state of Israel, especially the Arab citizens.” Around 20 per cent of all Israelis are Arabs.

“I know that my statements, before the election, hurt some of the citizens and the Arabs, but I did not intend to offend anyone,” Netanyahu told representatives of Israel’s 1.7 million Arab and Druze citizens. “I am sorry about that.”

The newly re-elected prime minister claimed that the “significant investments” he has made on minority groups “prove” the truth of his apology. “I consider myself to be the prime minister for all citizens of the state, regardless of their religion or ethnic background, and I believe that all of our citizens are partners in building the state of Israel and making it a prosperous and secure one.” The “1948 Arabs” were rallied to vote against him by the left-wing, he added.

In a statement to Anadolu, the Arab member of the Knesset (MK) Osama Al-Saadi described Netanyahu’s pre-election appeal to Jews as “very racist” because he made them fear a huge turnout of Arabs at the polling stations. “With such remarks,” said Al-Saadi, “he revealed the face of the upcoming extreme right-wing rule of Israel.” The MK revealed that he and fellow Arab members of the Israeli parliament have asked President Reuven Rivlin to take a stand against Netanyahu’s “inflammatory anti-Arab” statements.

The Likud Party headed by Netanyahu won 30 seats in the general election last Tuesday, which makes it eligible to take the lead in forming a new coalition government. As prime minister, Netanyahu would need to have at least 61 MKs on his side in the 120-seat Knesset.

Earlier, White House spokesman Josh Ernest said that the US administration will continue to reconsider its policy towards Israel, “even if Benjamin Netanyahu apologises for his remarks.” On Monday, in a speech to J Street, an Israel advocacy group, White House Chief of Staff Denis McDonough called for the end of the Israel’s “50 year-occupation” of Palestine and the establishment of an independent Palestinian state based on the 1967 borders.