ADL: Jewish nation-state bill unnecessary, cautions against politicization

The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) expressed concern that “the political debate in Israel over the proposed Jewish Nation-State legislation is undermining the fundamental principle of Israel as a Jewish and democratic state,” as stated in Monday’s press release.

ADL National Director, Abe Foxman, asserted that “Israel’s Jewish and democratic character, one that defines Israel as the homeland of the Jewish people and grants equal rights and protections to all citizens regardless of religion, is clearly expressed in the Declaration of Independence” and called the proposed Knesset legislation “well-meaning but unnecessary.”

This Sunday, the Jewish-nation state bill, that proposes to create a Basic Law enshrining Israel as “the nation-state of the Jewish people, was approved by Prime Minister’s cabinet and will move to a vote in the Knesset plenum. This bill specifies that the right of national self-determination in the State of Israel is unique to the Jewish People. The proposed legislation upholds “the individual rights of all [Israel’s] citizens according to law,” but says only Jewish people have national rights – a distinction that has drawn strong opposition.

Abe Foxman cautioned against the continued politicization of the issue on both sides: “It is troubling that some have sought to use the political process to promote an extreme agenda which could be viewed as an attempt to subsume Israel’s democratic character in favor of its Jewish one.”

Read ADL’s press release, here.