The Knesset Ethics Committee has decided to reject two complaints filed against Chairman Ayman Odeh of the Joint Arab List, following his participation in a violent demonstration in the Negev village of Umm al-Hiran, during which Bedouin fatally rammed a policeman with a vehicle and was shot to death.
The first complaint was filed by MK Nava Boker (Likud), who claimed that Odeh should be suspended. In a letter to the committee, she wrote, "The presence and behavior of MK Odeh significantly contributed to fanning the flames [and] to a violent response against police officers and the tragic murder." The committee wrote her that participation in demonstrations is part of the job of a member of the Knesset, and there was no evidence in her complaint of violence on the part of Odeh. The committee sent the same letter to right-wing activist Shamai Glick in response to a similar complaint against Odeh.