Netanyahu won't stop until all Arab political parties are gone

Netanyahu won't stop until all Arab political parties are gone Submitted by Abed Abou Shhadeh on Tue, 06/02/2026 - 20:21 As parliamentary elections loom, the Israeli leader is ramping up efforts to delegitimise Palestinian candidates Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks during a press conference on 19 March, 2026 (Reuters) On More than two decades ago, Benjamin Netanyahu, then Israel ’s finance minister, told the Herzliya security conference that the primary demographic threat facing the country did not arise from the Palestinians living in the occupied West Bank and Gaza, but rather from “the Israeli Arabs” in 1948 territories. Today, after the dissolution of the Knesset and with fresh elections looming, this alleged threat continues to shape Netanyahu’s actions as prime minister. With negotiations underway among Arab parties to run on a joint ticket, he is reportedly moving to ban one of its prospective members - the United Arab List party and its chair, Mansour Abbas - from contesting the elections.