Balad Party Leader Sami Abu Shehadeh's Post-Oct 7 Interview Sparks Controversy

Sami Abu Shehadeh, chairman of the Balad party, is facing renewed scrutiny following an interview he gave in Arabic after the October 7th Hamas attacks. The interview, conducted by Hafiz Al-Mirazi, resurfaced as the Attorney General, Gali Baharav-Miara, considers a request to disqualify Abu Shehadeh from running for the Knesset. In the interview, Abu Shehadeh dismissed claims that Hamas's attack was intended to derail normalization talks between Israel and Saudi Arabia. He described the massacre as a result of ongoing "pressure" on Gazans, stating, "The more the pressure increases, the more it leads to an explosion." He also expressed surprise at the restraint shown by Palestinians, suggesting they should have reacted sooner given the "humiliation" they faced.

Abu Shehadeh argued that attributing the attack to the failure of the Saudi deal disrespects Palestinians as a people with national and human dignity. He listed several events he claimed preceded the massacre, framing the events as a consequence of natural laws, comparing the escalating pressure to physics leading to an inevitable explosion. He asserted that the conflict did not begin with the war in Gaza.

The resurfaced interview gains significance amid a disqualification request filed by Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir against Abu Shehadeh's candidacy. The request centers on an article Abu Shehadeh published on October 8th, 2023, one day after the Hamas attacks. The party claims this article, along with other statements, demonstrates clear support for armed struggle by a terror organization against Israel.