AMMAN — Jamal Zahalka has been a member of the Israeli Knesset in good standing for 13 years. He was first elected to the 16th Israeli legislature in 2003 and has been regularly re-elected since.
But the Palestinian member of the Israeli Knesset is now barred from speaking for two months in the Knesset plenary or in any of the committees on which he serves. Two other members of his Balad Party, Haneen Zoabi and Basel Ghattas, will be prevented from participating in the Knesset debates for four months.