Gadi Eisenkot, a candidate to become Israel’s next prime minister, has accused caretaker Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of driving a “racist” campaign against the country’s Arab minority by attempting to discredit its political representatives through links to Hamas.
The rebuke marked an unusually forceful defence of Arab Israelis by a leading Jewish politician. Arab citizens make up more than 20% of Israel’s population and could play a decisive role in determining the next government.
Two Arab-led parties, Raam and the Joint List, won a combined 19 seats in last month’s election — almost one-sixth of the 120-member parliament — positioning them as potential kingmakers as Mr Eisenkot seeks to build a coalition.
“Arab citizens of Israel are an integral part of the Israeli story,” Mr Eisenkot wrote on X.
“The attempt to marginalise them and vilify them collectively is a profound violation of the principles of civic responsibility.”
Mr Netanyahu and his allies have repeatedly attacked Arab party leaders for declining to describe Hamas as a “terror group” after the unprecedented 7 October, 2023, assault on Israel.
Every Arab party leader has condemned the attack, in which Arab Israelis — descendants of Palestinians who remained in the territory that became Israel in 1948 — were also among those killed.
Mr Netanyahu has also repeatedly alleged that Arab-led parties engaged in electoral fraud, though election authorities have dismissed those claims.
Speaking at a ceremony this week, Mr Netanyahu criticised both Arab lists for refusing to acknowledge Israel as a Jewish state, despite the fact that Raam leader Mansour Abbas has recognised it as such in the past.
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Mr Netanyahu also alleged that the parties wanted to create either an “Islamic state” or a “nationalist Palestinian state”.
At the same event, National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir interrupted Joint List leader Youssef Jabareen as he took his oath of allegiance, accusing him of having “pledged allegiance to Hamas”.
“It is entirely legitimate to disagree with representatives of the Arab parties, even to strongly disapprove of some of them. But it is neither legitimate nor acceptable to malign an entire community, and I will not allow it,” Mr Eisenkot said.
President Isaac Herzog asked Mr Eisenkot to form a government on Sunday, following consultations during which most political parties — including the two Arab lists — backed his candidacy.
Avigdor Liberman, one of Mr Eisenkot’s right-wing partners, has said he would withdraw from a coalition that includes Arab Israeli parties.
Mr Eisenkot has 28 days to form a government, although he can seek an additional 14-day extension.
If he remains unable to assemble a coalition, the mandate would go to another politician, most likely Mr Netanyahu.
