Mansour Abbas, chairman of the United Arab List (known by its Hebrew acronym Ra'am), has announced his intention to leave the Knesset following Israel's next election cycle. In an interview with Independent Arabia, the veteran Arab-Israeli lawmaker said the coming campaign will mark his final run for a seat in Israel's parliament, after which he plans to step aside for a new generation of party leadership.
During the interview, Abbas outlined his party's political objectives ahead of the formation of Israel's next government. He sharply criticized the current coalition, describing it as "racist and fascist," and expressed Ra'am's commitment to replacing it with what he termed a "change government" that would include his party and grant it meaningful influence to advance the interests of Israel's Arab citizens.
"We want to be a complementary bloc to achieve a coalition of more than 61 mandates," Abbas declared, making clear that Ra'am sees itself as an integral component of any future political configuration assembled by the opposition camp.
The statement signals the party's continued willingness to participate in coalition negotiations, following its historic decision to join an Israeli government for the first time in 2021.
