'Recognise Palestine': Knesset Members Disrupt Trump's Speech, Expelled and Dragged Out (WATCH)

A dramatic scene unfolded in the Israeli Knesset on Monday when Donald Trump’s address was briefly disrupted after lawmakers Ayman Odeh and Ofer Cassif raised signs reading “Recognise Palestine.” Speaker ordered their removal from the plenum.

A dramatic scene unfolded in the Israeli Knesset on Monday when US President Donald Trump's address was briefly disrupted after lawmakers Ayman Odeh and Ofer Cassif raised signs reading 'Recognise Palestine''. Speaker Amir Ohana ordered their removal from the plenum as security swiftly escorted them out, prompting Trump to remark, 'That was very efficient'. 

Opposition protest disrupts Trump's Address in Israeli parliament

Speaker Amir Ohana called for order amid loud disapproval from other members as security swiftly escorted the protesting MK out of the hall. Ohana was heard calling the name of Ofer Cassif, a left-wing legislator, though reports suggest that two members may have been removed. Donald Trump resumed his address shortly after, quipping that the response was 'very efficient'.

The commotion occurred during a ceremony where Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that Trump would be nominated for the prestigious Israel Prize, the nation's highest civilian honour, and backed his long-standing bid for the Nobel Peace Prize.

Expulsion for pro-Palestine protest during Trump's Knesset speech

The two Knesset members expelled during US President Donald Trump's address, Ayman Odeh and Ofer Cassif, belong to Israel’s opposition bloc that has sharply criticised Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's policies in the occupied Palestinian territories. They have condemned the ongoing military campaign in Gaza, which has killed more than 65,000 people since Hamas's October 7, 2023, attack that left 1,200 Israelis dead.

Odeh, 50, leader of the Arab-Jewish Hadash party within the Joint List alliance, said he was removed “just for demanding recognition of a Palestinian state, a view shared by much of the international community.” Cassif, 60, also from Hadash, later wrote that their protest was a call for justice. “True peace will only come with the end of occupation and apartheid, and the creation of a Palestinian state alongside Israel,” he posted in Hebrew on X.

Netanyahu-Trump meeting in Knesset, Al-Sisi Confirms Attendance at Gaza Peace Summit

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with US President Donald Trump in the Knesset Chamber on Monday, where the two leaders discussed regional peace efforts. According to Channel 12 news, Netanyahu also spoke with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, who confirmed his participation in the upcoming Gaza Peace Summit in Sharm el-Sheikh. During his visit, Trump signed the Knesset guest book, writing, “This is my great honor, a great and beautiful day. A new beginning.”

(With agency inputs)