Israel considers 'loyalty' law for citizenship

JERUSALEM - Israel's cabinet approved a bill Sunday that would require new non-Jewish citizens to pledge a loyalty oath to a "Jewish and democratic" state, angering Arab lawmakers who see it as undermining the rights of the country's Arab minority.

The measure was largely symbolic, since few non-Jews apply for Israeli citizenship. Nevertheless, it infuriated the Arab minority and stoked tensions with Palestinians at a time when peace talks are deadlocked over Israel's refusal to extend a moratorium on building in the West Bank.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the bill reflected the essence of Israel at a time when he said many in the world are trying to blur the connection between the Jewish people and their homeland.

"The state of Israel is the national state of the Jewish people and is a democratic state in which all its citizens - Jews and non-Jews - enjoy full equal rights," he said. "Whoever wants to join us has to recognize us."

Ahmad Tibi, an Arab lawmaker, called the move a provocation. "Its purpose is to solidify the inferior status of Arabs by law," he said.

The bill must still pass a wider parliamentary vote to become law.

Israeli Arabs are citizens, with the right to vote, travel freely and collect generous social benefits. Arabs make up roughly one-fifth of Israel's 7 million people.

Roni Schocken, spokesman for the Abraham Fund, a group that promotes coexistence between Israeli Jews and Arabs, said the new legislation added to what is becoming a "terrifying" atmosphere for Arabs.

Efforts are under way in parliament, for instance, to punish groups that mourn the "Nakba," or catastrophe, the term Palestinians use to describe the suffering caused by Israel's founding.