MK Tibi disciplined yet again
Arab lawmaker earns second suspension after he is banned from delivering speeches in Knesset for one month over rude comments made to Ethics Committee chairman
The Knesset's Ethics Committee has on Tuesday banned MK Ahmad Tibi (United Arab List-Ta'al) from delivering one-minute speeches in the Knesset plenum for a period of one month.
The decision came after MK Tibi delivered a speech three weeks ago during which he verbally confronted MK Yitzhak Vaknin (Shas) who was heading the Knesset discussion.
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Tibi had already been suspended from the plenum and from participating in committee meetings for a period of one week last month over a limerick he read out during a plenum sitting called "Anasstasia's plumbing was damaged."
Tibi wrote the limerick following the incident in which MK Anasstasia Michaeli threw a glass of water in MK Raleb Majadele's face last month.
When Tibi repeated the statements that led to his suspension, Committee Chairman Vaknin told Tibi: "Your statements are a disgrace to the Knesset," and added "disconnect his microphone." After he was removed, an angry Tibi iterated an angry slur in Arabic aimed at Vaknin.
That confrontation 'earned' Tibi his latest ban. Reacting to the measures Tibi's spokesman said: "It is now clear to all that this is a personal persecution of MK Tibi. The Ethics Committee has become a right-wing tribunal that persecutes Tibi for his speeches.
"The incident should have led to the suspension of MK Vaknin for verbally attacking MK Tibi and preventing him from speaking."
During last month's confrontation, Vaknin told Tibi: "You are not adding dignity to this institution, don't moralize. I'll have you removed. There is a limit to the insolence and rudeness. We are not your dunces."
Vaknin's remarks came in response to Tibi's recitation of the limerick written about MK Michaeli.
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