Foreign citizens who support the boycott of Israel, or of its West Bank settlements, are to be banned from entering the country, a bill adopted on Monday stipulates.
The Knesset passed the law by a vote of 46 in favor and 28. The ban applies to any foreigner “who knowingly issues a public call for boycotting Israel that, given the content of the call and the circumstances in which it was issued, has a reasonable possibility of leading to the imposition of a boycott – if the issuer was aware of this possibility.” It includes those who urge boycotting areas under Israeli control, such as the West Bank settlements.
The measure was meant to target groups, rather than individuals, according to Roy Folkman, a lawmaker from the Kulanu party, which is part of the governing coalition of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Israel's Interior Ministry will be able to make exceptions to the law, and foreigners with residency permits will not be affected, according to the 'Times of Israel.'
Last week, Israel denied a visa to an American employee of Human Rights Watch (HRW), citing the organization’s alleged anti-Israel bias. The Israeli government argued that the HRW's “public actions and reports have focused on politics in service of Palestinian propaganda while falsely raising the banner of ‘human rights.’" Iain Levine, the program director for Human Rights Watch, called it “deeply troubling that Israeli officials, despite promises to the contrary, have denied Human Rights Watch’s country director a visa to enter Israel.”
