Israeli media personality and Channel 14 host Erel Segal offered striking praise for Mansour Abbas, chairman of the Ra'am party, during a radio interview on 103 FM Monday.
Segal characterized Abbas as the most politically skilled Arab leader in Israeli history, going so far as to suggest that had Abbas been active during Israel's founding era, the outcome of the 1948 conflict between Jews and Arabs might have been reversed. "Mansour Abbas is the smartest Arab politician in the history of the State of Israel," Segal stated.
He then presented an unusual hypothetical scenario about Abbas's potential impact had he been politically active in 1948: "If he had been around in 1948, the Arabs would have a state and we wouldn't have a state." The broadcaster connected what he views as Abbas's political acumen to his effectiveness in advancing the interests of his constituents.
Segal didn't merely label Abbas as clever, he positioned him at the top of the list of all Arab politicians who have operated within Israel's political system throughout the decades. Ra'am, formally known as the United Arab List, represents primarily Arab citizens of Israel and made history by joining an Israeli governing coalition in 2021.
