Members of the joint Arab list attacked the Prime Minister following his decision to be absent from the vote to dissolve the Knesset • "We need to check what he did in the Prime Minister's Office"
There is great anger and hard feelings among the Knesset members of the joint list following the decision of the Speaker of the Knesset, MK Mansour Abbas, that he and the three other Knesset members of the PM Conducted by members of the Knesset Joint List faction before the vote.
Photo: Knesset Channel
Sources in the joint list even accused Abbas of coordinating the move in advance with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his men.
Abbas confirmed to "Israel Today" that last Thursday he was in the Prime Minister's Office and held several meetings with senior officials in the bureau. However, he denied that his meetings dealt with coordinating moves with the Likud ahead of the vote to dissolve the Knesset. "But this meeting had nothing to do with the vote to dissolve the Knesset," Abbas said.
According to him, the meeting was intended "for the purpose of a meeting with all the senior officials in the Prime Minister's Office in order to promote the government program for the benefit of the Arab sector.
This is a program that is spread over five years and costs about NIS 500 million a year.
That is what is important to the Arab public at the moment and not small politics. "
Abbas also added: "I do not ignore the calls against me by the Arab Knesset members, my members of the joint list. But the reason we set up the joint list is to care for the Arab sector and not to please the Zionist left. The Arab public supports me, "They are only from the Arab politicians, not from the voters - and I serve the public that elected me, not anyone else. Not Gantz. Not Netanyahu. Not Bennett and not Lapid."
Abbas added: "I respect the decision of my members on the joint list to support the law to dissolve the Knesset, but with all due respect I do not have to obey it."
MK Ayman Odeh, chairman of the joint list, said: "As we promised the public, we continue to fight for equal rights, and also record achievements - without bowing down and while preserving our ideology and values."
"I am pleased with the significant progress made by Minister Avi Nissenkorn towards reforms that will be published in full on the most painful issues for Arab society - long-standing discrimination in planning and construction and closing the eyes of the authorities in the face of crime and violence. The joint list will continue to work.