Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has recently conveyed a message to Supreme Court Justice Salim Joubran saying he supports his decision not to sing the national anthem at the judges’ swearing-in ceremony about two weeks ago, Haaretz has learned.

Joubran was castigated by far-right figures and parliamentarians after he was seen on television not singing the anthem, unlike the rest of the judges, after the Supreme Court’s new president, Justice Asher Grunis, had been sworn in.

The chairman of the Knesset’s Constitution Law and Justice Committee, MK David Rotem (Yisrael Beiteinu), demanded Joubran be dismissed and MK Michael Ben-Ari (National Union) submitted a bill banning anyone who had not served in the IDF from being appointed to the Supreme Court.

Following the outcry, Netanyahu sent his envoy for the peace process, attorney Isaac Molho, to tell Joubran the premier understood him and backed his decision, officials said yesterday.

Molho reportedly told Joubran that Netanyahu appreciates his honoring the anthem by standing up and did not expect an Arab-Israeli to sing it, especially since it includes the words “a Jewish soul yearns.”

For more, go to Haaretz.com

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