Likud seeks to block two Arab parties from Knesset elections

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud Party announced that it will file an application to block the Joint List and Ra’am from running in the Knesset elections scheduled for October 27. Likud accused the two parties of not recognizing Hamas and Hezbollah as terrorist organizations but provided no evidence for the allegations.

Scraper SystemSeptember 14, 2026, 11:41 AM

Likud seeks to block two Arab parties from Knesset elections

Likud, led by Benjamin Netanyahu, announced that it will file an application to prevent two Arab-majority parties from running in the Knesset elections scheduled for October 27.

The application targets the participation of the Joint List, which brings together Arab political parties in Israel, and Ra’am, led by Mansour Abbas. Likud accused the two parties of supporting terrorism, denigrating Israeli soldiers and refusing to recognize Hamas and Hezbollah as terrorist organizations.

Likud’s statement provided no evidence to support these allegations. The party took this step as it intensified its political criticism of Gadi Eisenkot, the former army chief of staff.

Likud links Arab parties to Eisenkot

Likud described the Joint List and Ra’am as Eisenkot’s “natural partners.” The party claimed that Eisenkot would seek the support of the two Arab parties, along with opposition leaders Yair Golan and Avigdor Lieberman, to form a government.

The Joint List brings together the main components of Israel’s Arab political parties. Ra’am is running in the elections as an independent party after leaving the alliance.

Arab parties could gain prominence in coalition talks

Ra’am became the first Arab party to join an Israeli governing coalition in 2021. Recent opinion polls have placed Eisenkot’s Yashar Party ahead of Likud.

Neither Netanyahu’s political bloc nor the opposition has established a clear majority capable of reaching the 61 seats needed to form a government. This could give Arab parties a significant position in coalition calculations after the elections.

Source: Anadolu Ajansı

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Likud seeks to block two Arab parties from Knesset elections

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Likud links Arab parties to Eisenkot

Arab parties could gain prominence in coalition talks

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