Israeli Minister Accuses Arab Party of 'Civil Jihad' Against Israel

Orit Strock, Israel's Minister of Settlement and National Missions, launched a sharp attack on the Arab party Ra'am and its leader, Mansour Abbas, on Thursday. Strock alleged that Ra'am is promoting what she termed "civil jihad," aiming to take over Israel from within through political and governmental means, rather than through violence. She described Ra'am as the political arm of the Islamic Movement in Israel, which she characterized as a "sister movement" to Hamas, pursuing the same goals through different methods.

Strock pointed to numerous photos of Mansour Abbas with Hamas officials, including Ra'azi Hamed, as evidence of significant ties between the movements, despite Ra'am's public statements. She claimed that Ra'am's primary agenda, articulated in Arabic, is to "conquer Israel from within" by exploiting Israeli democracy. Strock contrasted this approach with the Northern Branch of the Islamic Movement, led by Ra'ed Salah, which has been outlawed.

According to Strock, Abbas's stated goal is to dismantle Israel as the nation-state of the Jewish people and transform it into a state for all its citizens. She cited Abbas's alleged use of terms like "Palestinian face" for Israeli Arabs, "usurped land" for Israel, "martyrs" for terrorists, and "Nakba" for the establishment of Israel, as indicative of his worldview. Strock also claimed Abbas stated that participating in the governing coalition, rather than just the Knesset, facilitates this "civil jihad."

Based on these claims, Strock called on Zionist Knesset members to prevent Ra'am from running in elections and to avoid supporting a government that relies on Ra'am's votes. She also addressed recent allegations of election bribery and foreign funding involving Ra'am, demanding a thorough investigation. Strock stated that if the funds originated from Qatar and Turkey, sources she linked to global Islamic terrorism, it would represent a further severe escalation.

Strock concluded by asserting that Ra'am is unfit to be part of any Israeli coalition, regardless of the investigation's outcome. She argued that without the Supreme Court's intervention, Ra'am's presence in the Knesset could have been prevented. She urged Israelis to resolve internal political disputes democratically but warned against allowing enemies to use democracy to "conquer us from within."