Report counts 227 extremist statements before Knesset vote

JERUSALEM — An Associated Press report published on Tuesday counted 227 extremist and incitement statements made in Israeli politics since the start of 2026, according to the Israeli research centre Ofek. The count comes ahead of the Knesset election scheduled for 27 October.

According to the report, as relayed by the Associated Press, most of the statements from ministers, Knesset members and political officials targeted Palestinians in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. Some addressed Arab citizens of Israel and their political and civil rights. The report also said the use of social media and artificial intelligence tools to spread such content has grown as the election campaign has intensified.

The report cited several remarks. It attributed to Moshe Feiglin, leader of the Zehut party, a call to force Gaza residents to leave, including by cutting off their water. It cited Minister of Diaspora Affairs Amichai Chikli denying the existence of a Palestinian national identity. It also referred to National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir calling for Israeli settlement to be restored in Gaza, to remarks by Defence Minister Israel Katz on destruction in the territory, and to remarks by Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich on strengthening the Jewish character of the Negev and the Galilee.

The report also described statements questioning the legitimacy of Arab political representation. It quoted Knesset member Tsvika Fogel of the Otzma Yehudit party as saying that the place of Mansour Abbas and his colleagues was in interrogation rooms rather than the Knesset plenum. It said Knesset member Tsvi Sukkot described Arab lawmakers as a "fifth column". It also cited Knesset member Limor Son Har-Melech calling for Arab medical workers who studied at Palestinian academic institutions to be barred from the Israeli health system.

On the West Bank, the report described a rise in settler attacks. It cited an incident in the village of Al-Lubban al-Sharqiya, south of Nablus, where Israeli flags were placed in front of a Palestinian shop, blocking access to it. The shop owner, Muayad Awais, told the Associated Press that the area faced repeated attacks and that he had received threats if the flags were removed. The report also noted limited accountability in many cases of settler violence.

According to the report, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu does not necessarily use the same language as his far-right allies. However, his campaign runs under the slogan "The Right or Palestine", which critics describe as incitement.

Israeli officials reject international accusations linked to government policy during the war, according to the report. The report does not say how many of the 227 statements led to formal action, and it does not state who will rule on whether each one meets the definition of incitement. [Note: the source does not give a figure for how many of the statements were made by each party.]

Background

The Knesset election is set for 27 October. The report places the statements within the wider debate over the rights of Palestinians and Arab citizens of Israel, and over the influence of political rhetoric on public participation and relations between population groups.

The report refers to the war in Gaza and says some officials deny international accusations tied to government conduct during that conflict. Its figures come from Ofek's classification of statements. The Associated Press report is the only source for the count and the quoted remarks in this article.