There was a big bust-up in the Lower House's defence committee on Tuesday before a vote on the continuation of a programme involving the purchase of technology from Israeli companies.

Opposition lawmakers requested a suspension, given the situation in Gaza, but the MPs of the ruling coalition went ahead anyway and approved the measure.

Things got heated and, at one stage, Marco Grimaldi, an MP for the Green-Left Alliance (AVS), shouted "you're disgusting" at the representatives of the ruling coalition, sparking an angry reaction.