Former MK Mohammed Miari said during questioning Monday that he does not consider Syria an enemy country, and called the law forbidding citizens from traveling to hostile countries "anti-democratic and inhumane."

Miari, who once held a senior position in the Progressive List for Peace (PLP) party, was questioned for two hours in the offices of the National Unit for Investigating Serious and International Crimes in Petah Tikvah in connection to his visit to Syria as part of a delegation of MKs from the Balad party.

Miari served in the Knesset from 1984 to 1992 as a member of the PLP, and is now a member of the Balad list.

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"To me, Syria isn't an enemy country", he said during questioning.

In regard to the law forbidding travel to enemy countries, Miari said, "that is an anti-democratic and inhumane law that shouldn't exist in a democratic country."

Members of the Balad party made the two-day trip on Thursday without the approval of the Interior Ministry, as required under law. The decision to open an investigation into the trip was made by Attorney General Menachem Mazuz at the beginning of last week.

The Balad party refused to accept the ban on visiting an enemy country and said the law will not stand up in court. They also argue that it is their right as a minority to preserve their connection to neighboring Arab states.

"Personal identification with the Lebanese people and the preservation of their standing as a people is more important than formalities of the law," MK Azmi Bishara said during the trip to Lebanon.

"Our journey to Lebanon was rooted in the foundation of the Balad party platform, part of which states that we, the Arabs of Israel are an inseparable piece of the Arab nation," Miari added.

Under questioning, Miari emphasized that Balad supports peace between Israel and the Arab states, a peace wherein each side receives equal rights.

While in Syria, Miari traveled to Palestinian refugee camps where he met some fifty members of his extended family who left Israel during the War of Independence in 1948.

During the trip, members of Balad met with Syrian President Basher Assad, Vice-President Farouk Ashara, Lebanese Speaker Nabih Berri, and Lebanese Prime Minister Fouad Siniora. They also visited a Hezbollah stronghold in southern Beirut, in order to observe the destruction in the area up close.

In the following days, former MK Mohammed Hassan, who traveled with the Balad MKs may also be called in for questioning.