Israeli president criticises Netanyahu's ‘unacceptable remarks’ that the country is only for Jewish people

Israel’s president has lashed out at prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu for implying Arab-Israelis were second-class citizens when he said the country was only for Jewish people.

The embattled premier is looking to curry favour with far-right voters ahead of elections on 9 April, where, under the shadow of possible indictment, he is facing stiff opposition from an alliance of popular former generals.

President Reuven Rivlin did not directly name Mr Netanyahu but on Monday denounced what he called recent “entirely unacceptable remarks” about the country’s Arab minority.

It came after Mr Netanyahu had commented on Instagram that Israel was not a state of all its citizens, but “of the Jewish people – and only it”.

Mr Rivlin wrote on his Twitter account: “Recently, when political thinking is turning all reason on its head, we hear entirely unacceptable remarks about the Arab citizens of Israel.”

He added: “The state of Israel complete equality of rights for all its citizens. There are no first-class citizens, and there are no second-class voters. We are all equal in the voting booth. We are all represented at the Knesset.”

Mr Netanyahu’s outburst comes as he is fighting to wrench back support of the right from Benny Gantz, the country’s popular ex-chief of staff who has formed powerful alliance with two former army chiefs and Yair Lapid, a leading centrist opposition figure.

The premier had hoped to secure a fourth consecutive term in office making him the longest-serving prime minister in Israeli history.

But support for his ruling Likud Party has plunged in polls after the country’s prosecutor-general said last month he planned to indict Mr Netanyahu in three corruption cases.

The premier is due to face a pre-trial hearing in the coming months, after which the top prosecutor will issue a final decision on whether to send him to trial on a slew of charges including bribery.

Mr Netanyahu, who is under pressure to rally the right, has come under fire for his comments targeting Israel’s Arab minority, who make up nearly 20 per cent of the population or 1.8 million people.

On Monday he wrote on Instagram: “Israel is not a state of all its citizens”

“According to the basic nationality law we passed, Israel is the nation-state of the Jewish people – and only it,” he concluded.

The post was addressed to Israeli model and television actress Rotem Sela who had herself taken to social media to express disgust at anti-Arab comments made by Netanyahu’s firebrand culture minister Miri Regev.

Ms Sela had written: “Even the Arabs – believe it or not – are human beings”.

The Israeli president was not the only prominent figure to criticise the prime minister.

Hollywood actor Gal Gadot, best known for her role as Wonder Woman, posted in support of Ms Sela saying late Sunday: “Love your neighbour as yourself.”

“This isn’t a matter of right or left. Jew or Arab. Secular or religious,” the Israeli-born actress wrote on Instagram.

“It’s a matter of dialogue, of dialogue for peace and security and of our tolerance of one towards the other,” she added.

Last month Mr Netanyahu sparked fury in Israel and among powerful pro-Israel lobby groups abroad, when he facilitated a controversial merger between key coalition partner Jewish Home, a nationalist religious party, and the extremist Jewish Power, an offshoot of the banned Kach movement.

He also faced backlash for saying Arab parties “not only do not recognise Israel, they are working to eliminate Israel”.