Representatives from the Israeli National Religious Alliance failed, on Monday, to obtain the necessary majority to remove a member of the Knesset belonging to the far left because of his support for a lawsuit before the International Court of Justice accusing Israel of committing genocide in Gaza.

85 out of 120 representatives in the Knesset voted in favor of removing Ofer Kassif in a plenary session, that is, 5 votes less than the required supermajority of 90 votes.

The unusual vote to remove a sitting member of parliament reflects anger in Israel over a lawsuit filed by South Africa before the International Court of Justice, which says the Israeli war on Gaza amounts to genocide.

Kassif, whose communist party the Democratic Front for Peace and Equality sits in the opposition ranks on a joint list with the leftist Arab Movement for Change party, signed an open letter supporting the accusations against Israel but denied allegations that he supports Hamas.

According to the Knesset statement, Kassif said in the debate that preceded the vote, “This impeachment request is based on a blatant lie, which is that I support the armed struggle of Hamas.”

He added, "I am not ready to accept the government's claims about what is happening in Gaza literally."

Commenting on this, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich denounced those who did not support Kassif’s dismissal, and said in a statement, “Anyone who leaves a Knesset member who supports terrorism and incites against Israel in a time of war has lost his way.”

The number of Palestinians killed in Gaza as a result of the Israeli war since the seventh of last October - when the Palestinian resistance unleashed the “Al-Aqsa Flood” - has approached 30,000, in addition to about 69,000 wounded, and significant destruction to civilian buildings and facilities.

Source: Agencies