Johnathan Paoli
THE Israel-Hamas debate in Parliament became so heated that matters came to a head when the National Freedom Party’s parliamentary leader Shaik Emam tossed a bag of silver coins at the opposition benches in an apparent biblical reference to express his disgust at parties who support Israel.
The showdown was sparked by the debate on the budget for the Department of International Relations in the National Assembly on Tuesday when ACDP leader, Kenneth Meshoe, called on the government to appeal to Hamas to release all the hostages captured during the 7 October invasion.
Meshoe said he welcomed the release of hostages from Gaza, some of whom are South African.
But NFP MP Shaik Emam, wearing a Palestinian scarf, accused Meshoe of trying to mislead South Africans about the situation in the Middle East.
Dangling a clear bag containing silver coins, Emam tossed it over the podium in the direction of the opposition benches.
“So there are 30 silver coins. I give it to you all. Take it and sell your souls and sell your leader, your saviour that you brag about – that’s how disgusting you are,” Emam said.
But MPs are not allowed to bring props to the podium without permission, IFP’s Liezl van der Merwe pointed out.
“I think it was unparliamentary that he threw coins at us,” charged van der Merwe.
Emam was supported by MPs heckling from the virtual platform, chanting; “ACDP – Judas Iscariot.”
However, peace was restored after Emam headed a request from the House chairperson to apologise for tossing the floor which also promised to retrieve.
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