The Supreme Court on Sunday barred two activists from a hard-line, nationalist party from running in the Sept. 17 elections.
Benzi Gopstein, leader of extremist group Lehava ("Flame"), and Baruch Marzel, both members of the far-Right Otzma Yehudit party, were barred for inciting racism against Arabs.
Lehava opposes interfaith and inter-ethnic interaction, relationships and marriages. Its activists often riot outside mixed Jewish-Muslim weddings, as well as along the routes of gay pride parades.
In its ruling, Sunday, the court stopped short of banning Otzma Yehudit entirely.
Chief Justice Esther Hayut noted that the decision by the extended, nine-judges panel to bar Gopstein's Knesset bid was made unanimously and was based on "overwhelming evidence showing that his statements, as well as his actions as head of Lehava, systematically incite racism against the Arab."
With regard to Marzel, the court found that "the picture drawn by his statements over the year is one painted with clear and bold colors of racism."
A separate petition calling for barring Otzma Yehudit chairman Itamar Ben-Gvir from running in the election was denied.
