JERUSALEM, July 16 (Reuters) - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered the ejection on Sunday of an activist from his Likud party who mocked the Holocaust while heckling anti-government protesters, in remarks that suggested ethnic tensions beneath a constitutional crisis.
"We will not tolerate such disgraceful behaviour in the Likud movement," Netanyahu said in a statement on the ouster of Zarka, for years a towering figure at party campaign events.
Denying the Holocaust, questioning its scale or celebrating it is punishable by five years' in jail under Israeli law.
The historical catastrophe is an issue that generally unites Jews, and Zarka's remarks were condemned across the political spectrum.
Critics of the proposed judicial reforms argue that Netanyahu seeks to curb court independence even as he argues his innocence in a long-running corruption trial.
Persons:
Benjamin Netanyahu, Beit Shean, Netanyahu, Zarka, Zarka's, Dan Williams, Frances Kerry
Organizations:
Likud, Thomson
Locations:
Beit, Germany