Israeli Cabinet passed Jewish Nation-State Bill

Israeli Cabinet on 23 November 2014 approved a bill to call Israel the nation of the Jewish people. The Cabinet passed the bill by 14 votes to six and will now be presented in the Parliament (Knesset).

To become a law, it needs the Knesset’s approval.

The draft legislation, titled Israel, the Nation-State of the Jewish People, is backed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Netanyahu, earlier, has promised that it will guarantee equality for all Israeli citizens.

The bill also referred as the nationality law is intended to become part of Israel’s basic laws, and would recognise Israel’s Jewish character, institutionalise Jewish law as an inspiration for legislation and delist Arabic as a second official language.

Comment
This controversial legislation would raise debate as 20 percent country’s population includes Arab Muslims and Christians. The Palestinian lawmakers consider that the bill is a threat to the rights of the state’s Arab minority and its democratic principles.