Labor Party chairwoman Merav Michaeli reacted in an interview which aired on Friday to the Central Election Committee’s decision to disqualify Labor candidate Ibtisam Mara'ana due to past controversial posts on social media.
In these posts, Mara’ana boasted of the fact that she did not stand during the siren on Memorial Day.
In other social media posts, Mara’ana called Israel an “ugly” country, and claimed that the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip is a “ghetto under brutal occupation”.
Two months ago, she lambasted the IDF as an “occupation army”, and accused IDF soldiers of murdering an Arab child.
Michaeli, who appeared on Channel 12’s Ofira and Berkovic program, said she had forgiven Mara’ana for the posts.
"These statements are difficult for me and I in no way support them, but they were written ten years ago. She apologized,” said Michaeli.
“I forgive her. I'm in favor of rehabilitating sex offenders, in favor of rehabilitating violent men, so should I not forgive someone who says she understands that this was a poor statement?” she added.
The hosts, Ofira Assayag and Eyal Berkovic, were livid over the fact that Mara’ana was permitted to remain in the Labor Party despite the posts.
“There is a difference between apologizing for some statement, and coming out with harsh words against victims and bereaved families and not standing during the siren," said Assayag. "To say about a siren on Memorial Day, when parents sit at home crying because they have lost their children - 'two wonderful minutes'? As a citizen of Israel, I will never forgive her. She can cry until tomorrow, she only apologized because she wants a seat [in the Knesset]."
Added Berkovic, "When one speaks against bereaved families, no expression of sorrow will help, there is no going back. When you cross a red line, it’s over. The citizens of Israel do not forgive her, there are things that are unforgiveable. She is anti-Zionist and a Holocaust denier because she did not stand during the siren. A person who couldn’t care less about the siren has no place among us."
Michaeli replied, "She is not anti-Zionist and did not speak against the Holocaust. This is a woman who has fought against violence her entire life. She ran in the primaries of a Zionist party and accepts the State of Israel and Zionism."
"She took all these things back. I believe in rehabilitation, even of prisoners who did terrible things. We must move on, build together and rehabilitate, otherwise what kind of future do we have here? We need to contain all the parts of our society."
Michaeli did not rule out joining a government led by Gideon Sa’ar, saying, "If we have to form a coalition that replaces Netanyahu and there is agreement on the rehabilitation of Israeli democracy, while we put the other things aside - then that may be what we need to do. This is why it is important that the Labor Party is as large as possible. So that its values are represented."
She was asked who she would recommend to form the government after the election and replied, "Yair Lapid is the closest person to the Labor Party. I want to see a large center-left government that certainly does not include parts of the right. I see the Likud doing a delegitimization campaign against the Labor Party so that Blue and White takes the votes and goes with Netanyahu. Gantz wants my voters, he thinks he will trick them again. In order to replace Netanyahu and for the Labor Party's values to be represented in the government, it needs to be as large as possible."