Author: Jonathan Cook
Affiliation: Freelance British journalist based in Nazareth
Organization/Publisher: The Middle East Eye
Date/Place: June 4, 2021/UK
Type of Literature: Analysis
Word Count: 2030
Link: https://www.middleeasteye.net/opinion/israel-government-new-deepen-rifts-not-heal
Keywords: Israel, Netanyahu, the Israeli government
Brief:
The author argues that the involvement of Mansour Abbas from the United Arab List political party in forming Israel’s new coalition government—led by Naftali Bennet and Yair Lapid—will lead to more deterioration in the majority-minority relations. The author anticipates that Palestinian citizens in Israel will pay the heaviest price for Abbas’s decision to be part of forming the Israeli government. The real reason for the coalition is not any common ground amongst the political parties but rather the shared hostility of all parties towards Netanyahu’s personality. Meaning, the change in the Israeli government indicates mainly the removal of Netanyahu. Of course, Netanyahu will try his best for this government to collapse. For instance, he already is criticizing it as “left wing” and “dangerous,” which would most probably lead to more violence and potential assassination for Israeli leaders. Some commentators try to show this agreement between the head of an Islamic party and a settler leader as a “moment of healing”; however, the author—who has been an independent journalist based in Israel for nearly 20 years—exposes this as a misleading narrative. Thus, the rifts in Israel will not be cured, and social coexistence and integration are still in danger.
By: Fadi Zatari, CIGA Senior Research Associate
