Gideon Levy on Reel Talk: How Israel’s Arab Parties Could Become Political Kingmakers

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Gideon Levy, Haaretz columnist and editorial board member, says the day the Arab-led parties become Israel’s kingmakers will be a day of great change. They speak for one in five Israeli citizens, and neither Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu nor his challenger, former army chief Gadi Eisenkot, can reach a majority without them. Israelis vote on 27 October.

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النص العربي:
GIDEON LEVY: So the day that the Israeli-Palestinian parties will become the kingmakers will be a day of great change. We are not there yet.

DAIZY: But why would the Arab parties want to join a coalition of Israeli parties? Wouldn’t they just be them being complicit and allowing a government to continue a genocide and theft of more Palestinian lands?

GIDEON LEVY: Look, the whole game is sick because Israel claims it has 120 members of parliament, but the real political game is among 105 members and around 15 members who belong to the Israeli-Palestinian parties are not taking part, not a real part, and no influence at all. If they will increase in number and if they will join any government, they might be more effective and more influential. I’m not sure that the joint list will join the government. I would recommend them to do so.

DAIZY: So the Arab parties, the Israeli Arab parties, can they increase the number of seats in parliament? Or is there a limit?

GIDEON LEVY: Easily, because the participation of Israeli Palestinians is much lower than the Jewish ones, because they don’t believe they can have any influence. But if they will all go to vote, or at least in the same range like the Jewish voters, they can add another 20% to their power and then it’s really they have a veto.