Ra’am Signals Support for Possible Eisenkot Government Without Coalition Agreement

(MENAFN) Israel’s United Arab List (Ra’am), led by Mansour Abbas, plans to back a potential government headed by Yashar party leader Gadi Eisenkot even if the two sides do not reach a formal coalition agreement, according to reports.

“Our party, which has eight Knesset members, will support a Gadi Eisenkot government even if no coalition agreement is signed," a party source was quoted as saying.

Ra’am had not immediately issued a statement addressing the report, which emerged one day after Israeli President Isaac Herzog assigned Eisenkot the task of forming a new government.

The reported decision aims to prevent Eisenkot’s political bloc from becoming dependent on support from the ultra-Orthodox United Torah Judaism party.

Meanwhile, the Joint List, another Arab political party headed by Yousef Jabareen, is not expected to vote in favor of an Eisenkot-led administration without a formal agreement. However, it would also refrain from taking steps to bring such a government down, according to the report.

The two Arab parties secured a combined 19 seats in the October 27 legislative elections, with Ra’am winning eight and the Joint List obtaining 11.

Abbas had previously said his party would "act in accordance with the will of the Arab public, which is to change the government (of Benjamin Netanyahu)."

Parties opposing Netanyahu secured 67 seats in the election, compared with 53 won by groups supporting him.

However, most leaders of Israel’s opposition parties have rejected the idea of establishing a government dependent on Arab political factions. These opposition parties collectively hold 48 seats, falling short of the 61 required to secure a parliamentary majority.

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