The political legacy of former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu can be seen in part through the prism of his relations with Arab citizens. He has spent years demonizing them as a threat to Israel, especially at election time. But this year, he pivoted to woo a small Islamic party, Raam. Ironically, this paved the way for right-wing members of the “change” coalition that beat Mr. Netanyahu to accept the Arab party as a partner.

However, many Arab citizens are wary of Raam’s decision to join a government that includes former allies of Netanyahu. They fear that Raam, whose coalition agreement focuses on socio-economic commitments, will abandon the broader struggle for equality and Palestinian rights.

Rula Daoud, who works for equality and social justice in Israel, is among those Palestinian citizens of Israel who say they are not happy with the new government.

If the leader of Raam Mansour Abbas “really succeeds, he says that if you let go of a certain ideology, you can survive, which is bad for us as a Palestinian community,” she said. “And if he fails, you can say, ‘We’ve tried everything, but we still have no voice, no influence. “

“I see this as a lose-lose situation,” she said. “But maybe I should be more optimistic.”

Tel Aviv, Israel

A taboo as old as Israel’s 73 years as a state was broken this week when an Arab party joined a ruling coalition for the first time.

The inclusion of the small Islamic party Raam was the last piece of the puzzle needed to topple Benjamin Netanyahu as prime minister after 12 years in power, but it represents a huge political gamble.

If membership achieves the goal of uplifting the Arab minority, which has historically been marginalized and lagging behind the Jewish majority in almost all metrics, from education and infrastructure to income levels, it could change the face of the nation.

If it fails at a time when the majority of Arab-Israeli voters support a seat at the decision-making table, it could destroy their confidence in Israeli politics.

“Is he a game changer?” This is the most important question to ask, and it is not easy to answer because the test will be in the future, ”explains Sammy Smooha, professor emeritus of sociology at the University of Haifa and expert on Arab links. Jews in the country. “But as we have experienced Arab and Jewish policy in Israel so far, this is a very significant change.”

Professor Smooha notes that since 1948 Arab parties were only engaged in opposition politics, because they did not want to join governments, but also to a large extent, because of exclusion.

“We now have an Arab national political party that is eager to be part of a government and play the game of Israeli politics, something we have never had before,” he said.

Netanyahu led the way

Mr. Netanyahu’s political legacy can be seen in part through the prism of his relations with Arab citizens, whom he has spent years demonizing as a threat to the country, especially during election campaigns.

But this year, after Israel’s fourth election in two years, and seeing its political survival at stake, he turned to the socially conservative Raam party, whose name is the Hebrew acronym of United Arab List. Ironically, this paved the way for members of the right-wing “change” coalition against Mr. Netanyahu to accept Raam’s four members of the Knesset as partners, creating this watershed moment.

Yet many Arab citizens are wary of the decision to serve in a government initially led by former Netanyahu ally Naftali Bennett. He leads a right-wing party and has already led the movement of the Jewish settlements. They fear that Raam, whose coalition agreement focuses on socio-economic commitments, will abandon the broader struggle for equality and Palestinian rights.

So it’s a high-stakes decision for the leader of Raam Mansour Abbas, a dentist turned politician who grew up in a mixed Christian, Muslim and Druze village in the Galilee, where he learned the art of compromise early on. He must keep his promise to improve the lives of Arab citizens and avoid being seen as a fig leaf of inequality within the new government.

The challenge is all the more acute amid the mutual mistrust and fear between Judeo-Arabs that followed unprecedented internal violence in May, when tensions over Jerusalem and Israel’s latest war with Hamas in Gaza overflowed into the streets of mixed Judeo-Arab towns.

The Joint List, the umbrella Arab political party from which Raam split this year, voted against the new government on Sunday, which was approved by one vote in parliament. It was an intentional rebuke from Raam, who they see as betraying the general Arab public by failing to make issues of social justice and equality, alongside the rights of Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza, a condition for joining the coalition.

“Being in government cannot be an end in itself if it means taking responsibility for a political platform of this government, so no, I do not share the celebration,” said Yousef Jabareen, professor of law and former member of the Joint List in the Knesset. . “I don’t see this as a historic moment. For me, this is a sad moment because I fear that Raam will serve as a cover for the government, strengthening the occupation and settlements and pursuing discriminatory policies.

Risks for all parties

Although Dr Jabareen’s party was the first Arab party to champion the idea of ​​joining a coalition, the aim was, he said, not to join any government, and certainly not one with a majority of right-wing coalition partners. .

The unity of this new and fragile coalition – bringing together parties from the right, the left and the center – is an illusion, he argues.

“Whenever security tensions arise, whether it’s another war with Gaza or another [police] invasion of the Al-Aqsa mosque “in Jerusalem,” or brutal attacks on Arab demonstrators, Arab youth will speak out against the government and in particular against Raam, for giving it legitimacy, “he said.

Arik Rudnitzky, researcher in the Arab-Jewish Relations Program at the Israel Institute for Democracy, notes, however: “There are great risks here for all parties involved in this unusual coalition.

“They all have a lot to lose, so it’s either they protect each other or they all lose together,” he says. “Maybe this will serve to bind them together so that this coalition lasts for at least a few years, if not a full term. “

The difference in approach between Raam and the Joint List is that of pragmatism versus ideology, says Dr. Rudnitzky, an ongoing debate among the diverse Arab electorate.

Raam has taken a page from the ultra-Orthodox Jewish parties that have sat in the majority of Israel’s coalitions (but notably, not the new one) regardless of their policies, as long as they fund their communities.

But Raam has crossed all the traditional “red lines” for an Arab party. The lack of focus on Palestinian national issues, a thorn in the side of right-wing Jewish parties who have used it as a means to question the loyalty of Arab parties to Israel, makes Raam more palatable to the Jewish majority in as a whole, argues Professor Smooha.

“This accentuates the distinction between a ‘good Arab’ and a ‘bad Arab,’ he said. “A ‘bad Arab’ is considered subversive because he has a Palestinian identity, and may even be considered a traitor.

Mr Bennett himself had called Dr Abbas a “supporter of terror” in the past, for which he apologized in a recent television interview where he hailed him as “an honest man … a courageous leader ”.

“Out of options”

The change Dr Abbas has adopted is reflected in polls showing the Arab public’s opinion that it is time to sit down at the table.

“They are running out of options because nothing else has led to the changes they seek – so they need a change,” says Muhammed Khalaily, researcher in the Arab Society program at the Israel Institute. of democracy.

One area where Raam has to deliver is the government’s recognition of some of the Bedouin villages in Israel’s Negev Desert, largely slums without access to basic services like electricity or water. The main electoral support for the party comes from the Bedouin communities. Other goals are dramatically increased budgets to address decades of systemic neglect of Arab towns, schools and basic infrastructure, and the repeal of a law that disproportionately punishes Arab citizens for building homes. without license.

Rula Daoud, an activist with Standing Together, a grassroots organization of Jews and Arabs working for equality and social justice in Israel, lives in Lod, a mixed city that suffered the worst of Arab-Jewish violence in May.

She is among those Palestinian citizens of Israel who say they are not happy with the new government, although she is relieved that Mr. Netanyahu is no longer in power.

“I can’t be happy today because tomorrow we won’t wake up to be equal,” Ms. Daoud said, adding that she resented Dr. Abbas for playing what she sees as the role of “good Arabic”.

“If he really succeeds, it says if you let go of a certain ideology, you can survive, which is bad for us as a Palestinian community in Israel,” she said. “And if he fails, you can say, ‘We’ve tried everything, but we still have no voice, no influence. “

“I see this as a lose-lose situation. But maybe I should be more optimistic, ”she said. “The only good thing is that the Palestinian community does not have just one way of thinking. “

Mr. Khalaily, noting that Arab parties have been in opposition for years, said: “This is a historic moment, an important change for the Arab parties to step off the bench and enter the field. [of government]. But there is still no evidence that it will pay off.