Hanin Zoabi escorted from Knesset plenum
Hanin Zoabi escorted from Knesset plenumHadas Parush/Flash 90

The Knesset's Ethics Committee on Tuesday prevented MKs from flying abroad on tickets purchased by a BDS-supporting organization, Channel 10 reported.

According to the report, the decision was made after Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan (Likud) said he believes MK Yousef Jabareen (Joint Arab List) should not be allowed to travel using funds granted him by the pro-BDS "Jewish Voice for Peace" organization.

Erdan also requested that MK Hanin Zoabi (Joint Arab List) be prevented from flying to Ireland using similar funding.

In their response to Jabareen's letter, the Ethics Committee said that they recently corrected the Knesset's rules of ethics. According to Section 14a (d), "The Ethics Committee will decide not to approve travel abroad funded by an organization or body which willfully published a public call to boycott the State of Israel."

"The Ethics Committee's decision is a severe blow to the freedom of political activities enjoyed by elected officials," Jabareen wrote. "This is an activity which is an integral part of my job as an MK in the opposition, and it is unthinkable not to allow me to fulfill it."

"I am debating appealing to the Supreme Court, both against the concrete decision not to allow me to travel, and in general against the new rules of ethics, which allow the Committee not to approve travel funded by boycott-supporting organizations."

Jabareen's office in Umm al-Fahm was declared illegal in 2012, but had to be closed by the government in January of this year.

Meanwhile, in late 2017, Jabareen joined a delegation of Joint Arab List MKs in requesting that the European Union interfere in Israel's internal affairs.

Zoabi, for her part, has said that Israel is "closer to the Nazi regime" than she herself is. She has also claimed that "Jews are not a nationality, so we cannot talk about self-determination for the Jewish people" and said that Israel leaving Judea and Samaria is not enough, since "Zionism should leave from the whole area."