Ofer Cassif

Ofer Cassif (Hebrew: עופר כסיף‎, born 25 December 1964)[1] is an Israeli academic and politician. He is currently a member of the Knesset representing the Hadash party in the Joint List, for which he is sole Jewish MK.

Ofer Cassif
Date of birth (1964-12-25) 25 December 1964
Place of birthRishon LeZion, Israel
Knessets21, 22, 23
Faction represented in Knesset
2019Hadash
2019–Joint List

Biography

Cassif was born in Rishon LeZion. He attended Shalmon Elementary School and the Reali Gymnasium.[1] Growing up in a Mapai-supporting household, he joined the Left Camp of Israel youth group at the age of 16.[2] During his national service in the Israel Defense Forces he served in the Nahal and the Nahal paratrooper brigade.[2] He subsequently studied philosophy at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and earned a PhD in political philosophy at the London School of Economics before doing a postdoctoral fellowship at Columbia University. He became a lecturer in political science at Tel Aviv University and Sapir Academic College.[2]

Entering the political sphere, he worked as a parliamentary assistant to Hadash MK Meir Vilner.[2] Prior to the April 2019 Knesset elections he was placed fifth on the joint Hadash–Ta'al list.[3] In March 2019 he was banned from contesting the elections by the Central Election Committee due to provocative statements he had made,[4] the first time an individual had been barred from a party list. However, the decision was later overturned by the Supreme Court.[5] He subsequently entered the Knesset as the alliance won six seats.

Cassif is married with one son and lives in Rehovot.

References
  1. "גאה להיות קיצוני": לוחם הנח"ל שמתנגד לציונות ונפסל מריצה לכנסת Walla, 7 March 2019
  2. נתניהו רב מרצחים, צריך להלאים את סלקום. ראיון עם הנציג היהודי בחד"ש Haaretz, 7 February 2019
  3. Hadash–Ta'al list CEC
  4. Elections panel bars Arab slate, Jewish far-left candidate; court will now rule The Times of Israel, 7 March 2019
  5. Israel's Top Court Bans Kahanist Leader From Election Run, Okays Arab Slates, Far-left Candidate Haaretz, 17 March 2019
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.