Israeli Arabs who are disloyal to the State of Israel should have their heads chopped off, Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman said at an elections conference at the Interdisciplinary Center Herzliya this week.
"Whoever's with us should get everything – up to half the kingdom," Lieberman said Sunday, in a reference to King Ahaseurus' pledge to Queen Esther as described in the Book of Esther, which tells the story of the Purim holiday celebrated last week.
But Israeli Arabs who are disloyal to the state deserve a different fate, the chairman of Yisrael Beiteinu said at the "Voting for Democracy – 2015 Elections" election conference, Channel 2 News reported.
"Those who are against us, there's nothing to be done – we need to pick up an ax and cut off his head," Lieberman said. "Otherwise we won't survive here."
Prominent Israeli Arab MK Ahmad Tibi, who is No. 4 on the Arab parties' Joint List ticket, suggested a situation like that described by Lieberman would result in a Jewish version of the Islamic State group, also known as ISIS or ISIL.
Joint List "will remove racists' and fascists' heads only through democratic means – bringing as many [Knesset] seats as possible and active participation in the election," The Jerusalem Post quoted Tibi as saying Monday. "The stronger we are, the weaker the Jewish Islamic State will be."
Lieberman also reiterated his position advocating the transfer of at least some of Israel's Arab citizens.
"There is no reason for Umm al-Fahm to be part of the State of Israel," Lieberman said about a northern Israeli town populated by Arab citizens of Israel, according to the Channel 2 report. "Citizens of the State of Israel who raise a black flag on Nakba Day – from my perspective, they can leave, and I'm very happily willing to donate them to Abu Mazen," he said, referring to Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas.
