Yosef Haddad Attacks Arab Parties: "I'm Here to Oust Them"

Yosef Haddad, who holds the second spot on the Amcha Yisrael party list headed by Ofer Winter, launched a blistering attack on Arab parties and made clear he would never cooperate with them under any circumstances. "Is there even any doubt that I would cooperate with Mansour Abbas, who can't bring himself to say that Hamas is a terror organization?" Haddad asked rhetorically in an interview with Radio Kol Yisrael.

"I despise these people," he declared emphatically. "I'm here to replace them. I'm here to oust them from the Knesset. I want to represent the Israeli Arab voice. I want to work for Shfaram and Nazareth, not for Gaza and Jenin. I don't care about them, I care about here."

Haddad's remarks come against the backdrop of public debate over political cooperation ahead of the elections. The Amcha Yisrael party, launched several weeks ago, positions itself as a new voice in Israeli politics while emphasizing the importance of integrating all segments of the population.

Haddad, who has garnered significant public attention for his positions, is considered one of the central assets of the new party. According to previous reports, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office applied heavy pressure on him until the final moments before candidate lists were submitted, attempting to persuade him to withdraw from Winter's party and receive a safe seat within Likud. However, he rejected all offers and decided to remain with his party.

Ofer Winter (Photo: Chaim Goldberg, Flash90)

The Amcha Yisrael party submitted its Knesset list without merging with other parties, despite pressure from Religious Zionism led by Bezalel Smotrich to unite. Smotrich attacked Winter's decision to run independently, claiming that "the only ones who stand to benefit from Winter's refusal to unite in the national camp are Gali Baharav-Miara and Yitzhak Amit and their friends on the left."

According to a Channel 12 poll published after candidate lists closed, the Amcha Yisrael party is projected to win five seats. The poll indicates that both Winter's party and Smotrich's party will cross the electoral threshold, contrary to previous surveys.

The Amcha Yisrael list includes, alongside Winter and Haddad, Netali Shem Tov, Eran Ben-Ari, Fleur Hassan-Nachum, Lali Deri and others. The party has set clear conditions for joining a coalition, emphasizing the importance of integrating Haredim into the military and achieving military victory on all fronts.