In Israel election, Palestinian citizens weigh fear against disillusionment

Occupied East Jerusalem – Laila Atamneh, 19, remembers her parents arguing at the dinner table every time Israel would hold an election.Among the rare Palestinian Jerusalemites who are Israeli citizens and eligible to vote, her father would make the case for casting a ballot for an Arab-led electoral list. Her mother, by contrast, always abstained.“She thinks it feeds into the idea that Israel is a democracy and Palestinians have the same rights here – only to get extremely humiliated, and then get one of the worst governments ever, and be surrounded by fascists,” said Atamneh, who hails from the neighbourhood of Beit Hanina.On October 27, the 19-year-old will vote for the first time in Israel’s general election. She sees it as a responsibility to the millions of Palestinians in the occupied West Bank and the Gaza Strip, who will have no say in the next Israeli government but, she believes, bear the brunt of its occupation, ethnic cleansing and genocide.“I feel like I have to be these people’s voice,” said Atamneh. “Not that one person is really capable of that much – but if this gives them one percent hope, then I will do it.”But Atamneh, who speaks Arabic, said she struggles to f...