Ra'am Leader Recommends Eisenkot for PM, Dodges Hamas Terrorism Label

Ra'am party chairman Mansour Abbas visited the President's Residence on Thursday, recommending Gadi Eisenkot for prime minister and calling for an "emergency government" to resolve Israel's current crisis. Abbas asserted Ra'am's position as the leading political force in the Arab community, linking high voter turnout to anger at the outgoing Netanyahu government. President Isaac Herzog raised concerns about foreign interference and funding in recent elections, which Abbas dismissed, proclaiming his party's integrity and accusing elements within the Likud and Otzma Yehudit parties of political persecution. Yoav Segalovitz, a new member of Ra'am and former member of Blue and White and Yesh Atid, echoed these sentiments, criticizing Netanyahu's leadership and calling Itamar Ben-Gvir a "terror supporter" who was convicted. Segalovitz, a former police officer, also alleged blatant interference by the Prime Minister's Office in election day activities.

The most contentious issue was Hamas. Herzog questioned Ra'am's ability to sit in a government that confronts terrorism. While Abbas expressed support for disarming Hamas, aligning with a past Trump initiative, he consistently avoided labeling the organization as "terrorist." He argued that Ra'am's presence would not prevent the protection of Israeli citizens and highlighted the Islamic Movement's history of opposing attacks, stating his party members shouldn't face constant loyalty tests. Herzog pressed further, emphasizing that disarming Hamas is a prerequisite for any political solution, to which Abbas briefly responded, "We already said, we want that."

Abbas also criticized Netanyahu's handling of the October 7th failures, suggesting security could be maintained without flawed assumptions and sarcastically referencing intelligence failures regarding Yahya Sinwar. When pressed by the Director-General of the President's Office on why he wouldn't label Hamas a terror group, Abbas cited a need for "breathing room" to act as a bridge and influence, stating, "In a certain sense, this is about saving lives. We are against terror and violence in general." Following the meeting, Abbas reiterated his call for a broad government, surprisingly including the Haredi parties in a potential coalition led by Eisenkot, stating that consensus could be reached.