Minister Struck Claims She and Smotrich First to Expose Ra'am's Ties to Islamic Movement

Minister of Settlement Orit Struck from the Religious Zionism party responded to a Channel 14 investigative report by Omri Haim about the Ra'am party and its leader Mansour Abbas. Struck asserted that she and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich were the first to identify and warn about Ra'am's role as the political arm of the Islamic Movement.

In an official statement, Struck said that beyond recognizing the connections between Ra'am members and the Islamic Movement, she and Smotrich were also the first to oppose forming a government with Ra'am. She recalled that during the 22nd Knesset, when Ra'am held the crucial 61st vote supporting the coalition, she initiated parliamentary procedures aimed at exposing Ra'am's and its affiliated bodies' involvement in terrorism. To support her claims, Struck released documents and video recordings from Knesset discussions.

Struck further alleged that Yoav Segalovich, then Deputy Minister of Public Security, attempted to cover up the improper ties between Mansour Abbas and his party with the Islamic Movement. The Channel 14 documentary "Mansour Abbas, The Polite Jihad" aired earlier this week, sparking widespread reactions from Israeli public officials, including Struck, Avi Maoz, Almog Cohen, and Moshe Feiglin.

The report highlights ongoing political tensions regarding Ra'am's role in Israeli politics and its alleged links to the Islamic Movement, with Struck emphasizing her early warnings and opposition to Ra'am's inclusion in government coalitions.