Ra'am

Balad chairman Sami Abu Shehadeh virtually joins a Central Elections Committee hearing on a request to disqualify him from the upcoming elections, at the Knesset in Jerusalem, September 23, 2026. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

Palestinian MKs in Israel have long faced election bans. This time is different

From Ben Gvir to the Democrats, Israeli politicians have called to disqualify the Balad party chair — and the Supreme Court may no longer serve as a backstop.

By Samah Watad September 30, 2026

Head of Ra'am Mansour Abbas holds a joint press conference with new party member Yoav Segalovich in Nazareth, August 31, 2026. (Michael Giladi/Flash90)

Budgets for submission: What Israel’s opposition offers Palestinian citizens

The terms of Arab participation in Israeli politics haven’t changed in 80 years. While the Joint List remains sidelined, Ra’am has taken the deal.

By Waseem Hosary September 21, 2026

Members of Knesset Mansour Abbas and Ahmad Tibi walking outside the office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the Knesset, in Jerusalem, June 3, 2026. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

Palestinians could decide Israel’s election. But their parties are at a stalemate

Core disputes over how to utilize political power may not be resolved in time to form a new Joint List — and competing parties are ready to capitalize.

By Samah Watad July 24, 2026

Latest

Hadash MK Ayman Odeh and Ta'al MK Ahmad Tibi seen during a Hadash–Ta'al faction meeting, at the Knesset in Jerusalem, June 10, 2024. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)

Can a renewed Joint List survive until Israel’s elections?

The leaders of Israel’s four Arab parties say they agree on the importance of a unified electoral alliance. Yet they remain divided on the terms of the pact.

By Samah Salaime April 14, 2026

Ra'am head Mansour Abbas attends a session in the assembly hall of the Israeli parliament. May 16, 2022. (Olivier Fitoussi/FLASH90)

Netanyahu’s veiled threat to outlaw Ra’am is a message to all Palestinian citizens

With elections in the offing, the prime minister is plotting another term in power via delegitimizing an Arab kingmaker and suppressing voter turnout.

By Ameer Makhoul December 1, 2025

MK Ayman Odeh attends a plenum session at the Knesset in Jerusalem, July 10, 2023. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

Facing war and incitement, is there any hope left for Palestinians in the Knesset?

The Gaza war has revived a longstanding debate among Palestinian citizens of Israel about whether to participate in or boycott the parliament.

By Baker Zoubi June 6, 2024

Members of the Joint List arrive for a meeting with Israeli President Reuven Rivlin at the President's Residence in Jerusalem, as Rivlin begins consulting political leaders to decide who to task with trying to form a new government, September 22, 2019. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

The Joint List is dead. Who will lead the fight for Palestinian citizens?

The re-fragmentation of Palestinian parties in Israel exemplifies the lack of a political compass to guide their struggle, with the public divided on how to confront both a far-right government and a broken liberation movement.

By Amjad Iraqi November 7, 2022

Ra'am leader Mansour Abbas and party members at the party headquarters in Tamra, on election night, March 23, 2021. (Flash90)

Disillusioned with Ra’am, a new party wants Bedouins to have their own voice

The Islamist Ra'am has long had strong support in the Naqab. But after the party's failures in government, Bedouin citizens are demanding a change.

By Baker Zoubi August 17, 2022

A view of Israel's Separation Wall and the Al-Aqsa compound in Jerusalem, February 2, 2020. (Olivier Fitoussi/Flash90)

No, Israel’s apartheid doesn’t stop at the Green Line

The fall of the Bennett government illustrates that maintaining Jewish supremacy overrides all other considerations in Israeli politics.

By Orly Noy June 27, 2022

Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett and head of the opposition Benjamin Netanyahu at a debate in the Knesset plenum, Jerusalem, June 13, 2022. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

How Netanyahu and apartheid brought down Israel’s government

The Knesset's failure to re-authorize separate West Bank legal systems was the final straw, but Bibi remains the omnipresent issue driving Israeli politics.

By Haggai Matar June 21, 2022

MK Ayman Odeh, head of the Joint List, and MK Ahmad Tibi attend a faction meeting at the Knesset in Jerusalem, March 7, 2022. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

Bennett’s coalition crisis puts Palestinian parties in a dilemma

Facing disgruntled voters and the threat of Netanyahu's return, the Joint List appears conflicted about whether to provide a lifeline to the government.

By Wadea Awawdy April 11, 2022

Palestinian citizens of Israel take part in a demonstration in support of Palestinian prisoners on hunger strike, Haifa, Israel, May 22, 2017. (Maria Zreik/Activestills.org)

Why Israel is suddenly interested in its Palestinian citizens

Decades of discrimination have created profound gaps between Palestinian and Jewish citizens. Yet many Palestinians say they now see potential for advancing their interests.

By Samah Salaime September 20, 2021

Leader of the Joint List Ayman Odeh seen during a protest for coexistence in Tel Aviv, May 15, 2021. (Tomer Neuberg/Flash90)

Ayman Odeh still wants to be Israel’s first Palestinian prime minister

In his first interview following the new government's formation, the Joint List head talks Ra’am’s decision to join the coalition, his steadfast support for two states, and why he thinks he can lead Israel's democratic camp to victory.

By Meron Rapoport July 5, 2021