Golan Backs Arab Party in Government; Aide Clarifies Stance

Yair Golan, chairman of the Democratic Party, stated on Sunday that he supports the inclusion of an Arab party in a coalition government, describing it as a "natural, correct, worthy, democratic" step that would represent a genuine correction after years of incitement. Shortly after his interview on Kan News, his office issued a clarification emphasizing that his remarks reflected only his party's position and that the issue of integrating Arab parties was not discussed at a meeting of opposition bloc leaders the previous evening.

The opposition bloc leaders met and announced they had signed a "joint principles document to replace the government," describing the current government's ouster as their primary shared goal, despite ideological differences. Golan praised the meeting, noting the participants' "absolute determination" to form a "government of repair," asserting no other option would exist.

One significant ideological disagreement within the bloc concerns the two-state solution, which Gadi Eisenkot, chairman of the National Unity Party, opposes. Responding to these differences, Golan highlighted Israel's peace agreements with Egypt and Jordan as crucial security assets, stating that true security relies on political arrangements. He added that achieving these would necessitate addressing the Palestinian issue responsibly and intelligently, without compromising security.

Ofer Vinter's party, 'Am Israel,' responded critically to Golan's remarks, stating that his call for an Arab party in government, given that the only Arab parties in the political map are seen as terror supporters, proves the choice in the upcoming elections is between Vinter as defense minister pushing for a decisive outcome, or a Golan-Eisenkot-Abbas government incapable of achieving any resolution. The statement further asserted that self-identified right-wing individuals should join a broad right-wing government, not form one with those who allegedly define Israel as killing babies as a hobby.