The leader of the small Islamist party Raam, which may play a crucial role in forming a new government in Israel, today called for a new “reality” in the country’s divisive culture, without giving his support to Benjamin Netanyahu or the rival camp. .
“It is time to create a different reality for all the citizens of this country,” Mansour Abbas said, speaking in Hebrew from the Arab city of Nazareth (northern Israel).
His party came as a surprise in the March 23 parliamentary elections, electing four deputies.
His remarks were broadcast live on various Israeli channels, showing the importance of his decision to join or not to join a governing coalition and the camp of his choice, after the parliamentary elections, the fourth in less than two years.
«“I do not want to be part of a right-wing or left-wing bloc,” he said. “I am in a different bloc, the bloc that chose me to serve my people and gave me the mandate so that the demands of the Arabs – which for years remained only demands – become a real program that works“, He added.
After the election, Abbas said he was open to negotiations with Prime Minister Netanyahu’s camp, as well as with parties that want to oust him from power but sometimes have conflicting ideologies.
He today referred to the Koran and described himself as a “proud Arab and Muslim” in an unprecedented statement about the leader of a party considered a “regulator” in Israeli politics.
No Arab party has ever joined a governing coalition in the Jewish state, and the last time an Arab party supported such a coalition was in the 1990s.
Abbas, 46, today spoke about the issues he had raised in his election campaign, such as crime, food shortages and housing problems affecting Israel’s Arab minority (20% of the population).
Israeli President Reuven Rivlin said Monday he would nominate a candidate to form the next government by April 7. He plans to meet with party leaders on April 5 to determine who has the best chance of forming a coalition.
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