Nadia Hilou

Who is Nadia Hilou?

Nadia Hilou is an Arab-Israeli politician, who served as a member of the Knesset for the Labor Party between 2006 and 2009. She was the second female Israeli Arab MK after Hussniya Jabara, and also the first female Christian MK.

Born in Jaffa to Christian Arab parents, Hilou studied at Tel Aviv University where she gained a BA in social work in 1976. She later returned to qualify for an MA in the same subject 1992. In 1997 she became director of the Division for the Status of Women in the Union of local authorities, and in 2002 became deputy chairwoman of the Naamat Women's Organisation.

Hilou entered politics following the assassination of Yitzhak Rabin in 1995. She joined the Labour Party, and ran in party primaries prior to the Knesset elections in 1996 and 1999; however, on both occasions she failed to finish high enough up the list to win a seat, and was criticised for not joining one of the Arab parties. However, in the run-up to the 2006 elections Hilou won 15th place on Labour's list in the party's primaries. The party won 19 seats and Hilou took her place in the Knesset, relinquishing her previous positions. She served as chair of the Committee on the Rights of the Child. One of her first acts was to co-sponsor a successful bill strengthening laws against cyber sex with minors. She has also initiated legislation on compensating the relatives of murder victims.