Ofer Cassif

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 military service in the Israel Defense Forces, he served in the Nahal and the Nahal paratrooper brigade.[2] He studied philosophy at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and earned a PhD in political philosophy at the London School of Economics with a thesis titled On nationalism and democracy: A Marxist examination,[3] before doing a postdoctoral fellowship at Columbia University. Cassif is married with one son and lives in Rehovot.[4]

Cassif was 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.[5] In March 2019, he was banned from contesting the elections by the Central Election Committee due to provocative statements he had made,[6] the first time an individual had been barred from a party list. The decision was later overturned by the Supreme Court.[7] He subsequently entered the Knesset as the alliance won six seats. He was re-elected in elections in September 2019, 2020 and 2021.

In April 2021 Cassif was assaulted by police officers at a protest against evictions in East Jerusalem.[8] He was investigated for striking the policeman first.[9] In an interview with Haaretz, Cassif said: "I object to the ideology and practice of Zionism... it's a racist ideology and practice which espouses Jewish supremacy."[10] Cassif identifies as a Marxist and a socialist.[11]

In 2023 Cassif told Al Jazeera that his party had repeatedly warned that continued Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territories would lead to events like the October 2023 Gaza−Israel conflict, where innocent civilians on both sides pay the price. He called the Israeli government "fascist" and accused it of carrying out pogroms and ethnic cleansing against the Palestinian population.[12] He was later ordered suspended by the ethics panel of the Knesset for 45 days.[13]

• Ofer Cassif on the Knesset website