Netanyahu Associate Held Secret Talks With Arab Party Leader
Translated & summarized from Kipa by baba
Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu's associate, Nathan Effel, held secret talks with Mansour Abbas, chairman of the Arab Ra'am party, seeking support for a potential government led by Gadi Eisenkot. The discussions, which occurred before, during, and after the elections, included inquiries about the conscription law. Netanyahu publicly denounced reliance on Arab parties, calling them "supporters of Hamas," while Effel later claimed he was testing Abbas's "self-respect." Ra'am did not publicly respond to Effel's overtures.
The story in 5 lines · by baba
- Netanyahu associate Nathan Effel secretly contacted Ra'am chairman Mansour Abbas for support.
- Effel sought Ra'am's backing for a government led by Gadi Eisenkot.
- Discussions occurred before, during, and after the recent elections.
- One inquiry focused on Ra'am's potential support for the conscription law.
- Netanyahu publicly criticized reliance on Arab parties as supporting Hamas.
Despite Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu's public campaign against relying on Arab parties, a prominent associate of his, Nathan Effel, engaged in behind-the-scenes discussions with Mansour Abbas, the chairman of the Ra'am party. Effel approached Abbas on several occasions before, during, and after the recent elections, seeking to determine if Ra'am would support a government led by Gadi Eisenkot, the leader of the Yesh Atid party. According to Channel 12 News, one of these inquiries concerned the conscription law, with Effel asking Abbas if Ra'am would enable Eisenkot to pass the law in the Knesset. Abbas reportedly replied that they would wait for the election results before deciding.
Following the election results, Effel contacted Abbas again to inquire about support for Eisenkot. Ra'am chose not to respond at that time. The contacts continued even after the elections, when Netanyahu was publicly criticizing the "change bloc" for allegedly seeking to rely on Arab parties. Effel reportedly asked Abbas if he would assist Eisenkot in the Knesset, despite Eisenkot not wanting Ra'am in his coalition. Abbas's response was that they would "do what is good for us."
Earlier on the day of the report, Netanyahu publicly stated that "it is impossible to form a government with supporters of Hamas, with a government that is dependent on supporters of Hamas." He also added that one cannot fight Iran and its proxies if they are dependent on supporters of radical Islam within the government.
Effel initially denied having contact with Abbas, describing him as a dangerous figure. However, after being presented with the inquiries and documentation, Effel stated that no messages were conveyed. He claimed he merely asked Arab individuals if they had "a shred of self-respect" and if they would support someone who did not want them in a coalition and was merely exploiting them. He said many, including Abbas, responded by saying they would "do what is good for us."
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