Joint List tells Herzog it seeks to support government from outside, won’t topple it even amid war

The Joint List delegation tells President Isaac Herzog that it recommends Yashar, chairman Gadi Eisenkot, to form a government and support it from outside, seeking to replace Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government despite major disagreements with Eisenkot.

Party chair Yousef Jabareen says the delegation’s support reflects Arab voters’ demand for change, citing racism, discrimination, crime and exclusion affecting Arab citizens under the current coalition.

“Our public really went out to vote for change,” he says. He acknowledges “disagreements with Eisenkot on many issues,” including his positions and what Jabareen calls his failure to take a firm stance against incitement targeting Arab citizens during the election campaign.

“We are not choosing between good and better, but between what we see as bad and even worse,” he says.

Asked about Israel’s security and the possibility of a major military campaign, Jabareen says the Joint List would seek alternatives based on peace.

“There are no military solutions,” he says. “We are trying to promote alternatives based on peace,” adding that the party would not take part in a military operation.

MK Ahmad Tibi says the Joint List would support a minority government from the outside, acting as a “blocking bloc,” but does not want to help form a government only to see it collapse soon afterward.

“If we support a government from outside, we don’t want to give it a safety net only to bring it down a month, two months or three months later,” he says.

Tibi also stresses the party’s leverage in the Knesset, where it holds 11 seats: “No parliamentary or political move in the Knesset can happen without the Joint List,” he says.