File photo: Israel's Arab parliamentary bloc and Knesset members scuffle with security after they held signs in protest during the speech of U.S. Vice President Mike Pence in Israel's parliament in Jerusalem, on January 22, 2018. (AFP)

JERUSALEM, July 19 (Xinhua) -- Israel passed on Thursday a bill that defines the country as an "exclusively Jewish state," in a move denounced by its Arab citizens and human rights groups.

The law, supported by the right-wing government, passed by a vote of 62 in favor while 55 against after discussions that lasted until the early morning hours.

After the vote, several Arab lawmakers shouted "apartheid" during a speech of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and ripped up papers of the law.

"This is a defining moment in the annals of Zionism and the history of the state of Israel," Netanyahu told the parliament.

The law states that only Jews have the right of self-determination in Israel. "Israel is the historic homeland of the Jewish people and they have an exclusive right of national self-determination," the law reads.

The law also revokes Arabic of its status as an official language alongside Hebrew.

Israel's Arabs comprise about 20 percent of Israel's 9 million population.

Adalah, a legal center for the Arab minority in Israel, denounced the law.

The General Director of Adalah, Hassan Jabareen, said in a statement that the law "features key elements of apartheid, which is not only immoral but also absolutely prohibited under international law."

According to Jabareen, "by defining sovereignty and democratic self-rule as belonging solely to the Jewish people, Israel has made discrimination in a constitutional value and has professed its commitment to favoring Jewish supremacy."