Hatikvah was not played at a Hebrew University event last week as was announced to be the case to avoid offending Arab students who do not identify with the national anthem. The decision was met with much criticism, including from Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu.

The prime minister now explains that this was sufficient for him to use an example to highlight the need of the Nationality Law, which officially declares Israel to by a Jewish state, a move that will undoubtedly elicit the ire of Arabs and other non-Jewish citizens.

In a meeting with Likud faction colleagues, he used the Hebrew University incident as a case in point to prove the need for passing the law and to enlist their support.

(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)