Arab Knesset member speaks against Israel

JERUSALEM, April 13 (UPI) -- Arab Knesset member Azmi Bishara Friday said Israel "would not be able to handle the challenge I've thrown to its Jewry and Zionist stance."

Bishara, who left the country two weeks ago and says he plans to resign from the legislature, said he does not plan to return to Israel at any point in the near future, the Jerusalem Post reported Friday.

"We (Arabs) are the original owners of this land," he said. "They want us to act like guests in our own country and to prove all the time that all is well. All is not well. We are Palestinian Arabs, the children of this land and we will act in a manner fitting for a people who oppose occupation and aggression."

Bishara would not reveal his location but said he plans to visit Qatar Sunday, Haaretz reported.

"I want privacy," he said. "I am not prepared to have the media falling all over me."