Balad chairman Sami Abu Shehadeh accused Ra'am of thwarting efforts to form a unified Arab electoral list, according to Abu Ali Express. He said Balad showed flexibility and agreed to compromises regarding a technical joint slate during negotiations among four parties, and is now willing to continue compromising to enable a three-party joint list.
Balad chairman Sami Abu Shehadeh directly accused the Ra'am party of being the obstacle to a joint Arab electoral list, in remarks reported Wednesday by Abu Ali Express. The accusation follows a day of reports on the breakdown of efforts to unite the four main Arab-majority parties—Hadash, Ta'al, Balad, and Ra'am—ahead of the next Knesset elections. Abu Shehadeh stated that Balad had shown flexibility and agreed to compromises on the structure of a technical joint slate during the negotiations, but that Ra'am ultimately thwarted the process. He added that Balad remains willing to continue compromising in order to enable a joint list of three parties.
As The Zioneer reported earlier Wednesday (14:57 Jerusalem), Abu Shehadeh had already blamed Ra'am for the collapse of the talks. The rift between Ra'am and the other Arab parties has been widening: earlier this month, Hadash, Ta'al, and Balad finalized a joint list without Ra'am. Ra'am chairman Mansour Abbas has stated that his party is committed to a path of coalition partnership, in contrast to the other three parties which he said are headed for opposition. This bulletin marks a further hardening of Balad's public position, shifting from a general complaint to a direct and named accusation against Ra'am.
2 developments
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- DevelopingMansour Abbas says Ra'am on coalition path while other Arab parties head to opposition
- DevelopingFriction within Bennett's 'Yachad' party as polls drop, sources say
Source and signal
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