{"id":2758435,"date":"2026-10-20T09:34:56","date_gmt":"2026-10-20T15:34:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.dailycamera.com\/?p=2758435&preview=true&preview_id=2758435"},"modified":"2026-10-20T09:42:48","modified_gmt":"2026-10-20T15:42:48","slug":"israel-election-extreme-speech","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.dailycamera.com\/2026\/10\/20\/israel-election-extreme-speech\/","title":{"rendered":"In their own words: Israeli politicians\u2019 extreme speech surges ahead of elections"},"content":{"rendered":"

By CARA ANNA<\/strong><\/p>\n

LUBBAN AL-SHARQIYA, West Bank (AP) \u2014 Extreme speech has surged under Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu\u2019s<\/a> far-right government and can be heard at the highest levels ahead of Israel\u2019s Oct. 27 elections<\/a>.<\/p>\n

With just days before the vote, Israeli think tank OFEK shared a spreadsheet with The Associated Press listing 227 extreme comments made this year by officials, as part of an ongoing project tracking incitement. While Netanyahu has not used the rhetoric of his far-right allies, he campaigns with the slogan \u201cright or Palestine,\u201d which some critics have called incitement.<\/p>\n

This is the atmosphere in Israel after years of war. In the wake of the Oct. 7, 2023, attacks<\/a>, a defense minister said the military was fighting \u201chuman animals\u201d in Gaza. Such remarks were cited by South Africa in accusing Israel of genocide<\/a> before the International Court of Justice, allegations Israel vehemently rejects.<\/p>\n

The hate speech, amplified by AI and social media, shapes everyday attitudes in Israel. One commentator who backs Netanyahu has called the prime minister\u2019s closest challenger, Gadi Eisenkot, a \u201cmonkey,\u201d a comment widely seen as a slur against Israel\u2019s population of Mizrahim, or Jews with ancestry from across the Arab world.<\/p>\n

Some extreme comments target Israel\u2019s Arab citizens<\/a>, who have the right to vote and hold office. But most speech is aimed at Palestinians in Gaza and the occupied West Bank, where violence by Jewish settlers<\/a> has surged and few arrests are made.<\/p>\n

Across the West Bank, riddled with checkpoints and barriers<\/a> for Palestinians, the Arabic on some road signs is painted out. Settlers jeer and honk as they pass a Palestinian roadside shop in Lubban al-Sharqiya, where dozens of Israeli flags were placed last month. Owner Mouayad Oweis has been threatened if he removes them.<\/p>\n

\u201cHere we face attacks by settlers all the time,\u201d he said, looking worn out. Some of the harshest speech in Israel reflects a desire to see Palestinians like him leave for good.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s endless. It\u2019s insane,\u201d said Achiya Schatz, founder of the Israeli disinformation monitor FakeReporter, of the toxic discourse. \u201cIn Israel, it\u2019s quite regular,\u201d and getting worse, he said.<\/p>\n

\"An
An Israeli settler carries flags after dozens of other Israeli flags were set up in front of a shop belonging to Palestinian Mouayad Oweis, blocking access to his business in the West Bank village of al-Lubban al-Sharqiya, Thursday, Oct. 8, 2026. (AP Photo\/Leo Correa)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Here are some examples.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe residents of Gaza must be forced to leave their homes; they must be expelled by all possible means, such as cutting off their water, and whoever wants to drink a bottle will leave. Killing them all would be incredible.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2014 Moshe Feiglin, leader of the Zehut party<\/p>\n

\u201cThey are a \u2018fifth column\u2019 in every sense of the term, fervent admirers of Hamas who dream of the day they can destroy us all.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2014 Zvi Sukkot, member of parliament, on Arab members<\/p>\n

\u201cAnyone who chose to study medicine at institutions that serve as incubators for terrorism and for the denial of the existence of the people in Israel \u2014 whether in (the West Bank city of) Nablus or east Jerusalem \u2014 cannot be part of the Israeli healthcare system.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2014 Limor Son Har-Melech, member of parliament, on Arab medical workers<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is not enough merely to isolate Gaza. Its residents must be expelled from it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2014 Zvika Mor, candidate and father of former hostage Eitan Mor<\/p>\n

\u201cWe destroyed Gaza, and that is the change I brought with the backing of the prime minister.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2014 Israel Katz, defense minister<\/p>\n

\u201cIn fact, there is no such thing as a Palestinian identity.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2014 Amichai Chikli, minister for diaspora affairs and combating antisemitism<\/p>\n

\u201cIn Jenin, there are no innocent civilians. In Jenin, there are no innocent children.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2014 Yitzhak Kroizer, member of parliament, on the West Bank city<\/p>\n

\"Israeli
Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir speaks to an audience during a political conference in Jerusalem, Sunday, Oct. 11, 2026. (AP Photo\/Ohad Zwigenberg)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cWe are returning home. Gaza is ours.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2014 Itamar Ben-Gvir, minister of national security<\/p>\n

\u201cIf the state of Israel had not been established, and had it not helped the population to which Walid and his friends belong to pursue higher education, they would still be riding camels.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2014 Amichai Eliyahu, minister of heritage<\/p>\n

\u201cThe bottom line is that the salad you are eating contains a great deal of Palestinian poison.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2014 Amit Halevi, member of parliament, on produce from the West Bank<\/p>\n