First Muslim Hijab Sits in Israeli Defense

A Muslim MP from the Arab minority in Israel will be the first to sit in parliament wearing a headscarf.

Iman Yassin Khatib, aged 55, won a seat on the Joint List coalition list which consisted of 15 seats out of a total of 120 Knesset members. This happened after the Arab parties pocketed the largest number of elections this week in Israel.

Reporting from Reuters, the party took most of its votes from 21% of Israel's Arab minority - who are of Palestinian descent Israeli citizenship.

The mother of four used to be a manager at a community center in the village of Yafat an-Nasreh in Galilee on the outskirts of Nazareth, the city where Jesus grew up, before plunging into national politics.

"It is impossible (the veil) will not attract people's attention. But what's more important is what's inside: the ability and potential to advance our community, "Khatib said when he received his congratulations and took pictures on a road in Nazareth.

Look behind the veil

Khatib said he felt his hijab sometimes aroused anti-Islamic sentiments in Israel, whose nine million population is mostly Jewish.

"Every challenge I face in my life becomes more difficult because I wear the hijab," he said. But he urged people to "see the figure behind his veil".

The Arab-Israeli minority group is largely of Palestinian ancestry who lived under Ottoman (Ottoman) rule and later British colonialism before settling in Israel. This group is dominated by Muslims, but also becomes a home for Christians and Druze.

Many Arabs in Israel complain of discrimination in areas such as health, education and housing. In addition, Arab-Israeli leaders accuse Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of inciting them during the recent general election.

Netanyahu's Likud Party denied that the government prepared an investment plan of 4.34 billion US dollars for the Arab sector, the largest amount of investment ever made by the Israeli government.

The number of Arab voters jumped to 64.7% in this election, the highest in the last 20 years. The situation gave the Joint List coalition an additional two more seats in parliament than last September's vote.

The soaring Arab voters in Israel

This is the third largest coalition party in the Knesset after the Likud Party and the Blue and White alliance. But its influence is likely to be limited because no Arab party has ever joined the Israeli government.

Analysts assess anger against Netanyahu and his ally Donald Trump, as one reason for the soaring Arab voters in this election. This election is the third in a year.

Khatib is one of four women MPs among the Knesset members included in the Joint List. He was part of his Islamist faction, Ra'am, campaigning for more services and rights for Arabs in Israel, and supporting the formation of a Palestinian state.

"There is a growing awareness among Arab women that we can become active participants in the future," Khatib said. "My message to young women: there is always the possibility. There is a way. Don't limit your hopes and dreams, "he concluded.

Source: dw.com