Israeli opposition leaders sign cooperation pact to oust Netanyahu

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu trolled the opposition on social media, posting to X an AI-enhanced image of the meeting that inserted two Arab party leaders into the picture.

By JNS

Opposition party leaders signed an agreement on Saturday evening to cooperate in the run-up to Israel’s national elections on Oct. 27.

Likud party messaging repeated its campaign warning that an opposition victory would bring Arab parties into the government.

Yashar party chief Gadi Eisenkot, Yisrael Beiteinu’s Avigdor Liberman, The Democrats party’s Yair Golan and Together’s Naftali Bennett and Yair Lapid signed a declaration of principles agreeing to do what they could to expand their electoral base, refrain from infighting, commit to working together to establish a government immediately after the elections, and set up three working groups within 48 hours.

“We are united and determined to bring reform and hope to the State of Israel. We call on every citizen who believes in this country, its values, and its strength to go out and vote with us on Election Day to shape the future of our children together,” the opposition leaders said in a statement, posted together with a picture of them meeting at Lapid’s home in Tel Aviv.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu trolled the opposition on social media, posting to X an AI-enhanced image of the meeting that inserted two Arab party leaders into the picture who were not actually in attendance.

The message: The opposition can’t win without the support of the Arab parliamentary factions.

The two leaders photo-shopped into the image were Mansour Abbas of the United Arab List (Ra’am), who served in the Bennett-Lapid government of 2021-2022, and Ahmad Tibi, leader of the Ta’al party, which is running as part of the Joint List, a coalition of three Arab parties.

“Eisenkot will form a left-wing government with Liberman, Yair Golan, Bennett, and the Arab parties. Only a large Likud will stop them,” Netanyahu captioned the message.

The Likud echoed this theme on its X account on Saturday: “Don’t listen to our Likud fear campaign; listen to Segalovitz! There is no government for Eisenkot and Liberman without Ra’am.”

It attached a comment from Yoav Segalovitz, a former Yesh Atid lawmaker and retired senior police official, who switched to Ra’am’s parliamentary faction on Aug. 31:

“Anyone who wants to lead the State of Israel toward real change must demonstrate leadership and not fold in the face of the Likud’s fear campaign. Israel needs deep reform and true partnership through courageous leadership. Eisenkot will not have a government without Ra’am.”

The Central Elections Committee disqualified all the Arab parties—Balad, Hadash, and Ta’al (running together as the Joint List)—and Ra’am from running in the Oct. 27 election after reviewing past expressions of support for terrorists by the leadership of the parties.

This week the High Court of Justice will decide whether to uphold the committee’s decision. The court has reversed previous election committee rulings banning Arab parties for extremism.