The chairman of the United Arab List, Mansour Abbas, was fed up with repeated attacks on him and his party, and decided to respond decisively.
In a meeting with a senior Likud official, who reportedly is close to opposition leader Benjamin Netanyahu, he clarified: "The next time this happens, there will be a very significant response that will harm Netanyahu personally - and the Likud in terms of image."
This morning, Sunday, he spoke with Golan Yochpaz and Anat Davidov on the issue, and also referred to an investigation into his party that was published on Channel 13 News over the weekend.
MK Abbas explained why he is angry at the stand taken by the Likud party and its leader against him: "Political discourse should be conducted in a clean manner, without false accusations. My story with the Likud lasted, not months, but since April 2019 we have been debating, maintaining a new direction." He added:" If you want to continue in this vein and delegitimize, I will tell the truth about the relationship, the dialogue and what we were promised. All the issues he is trying to shake off today."
He also referred to his invitation to MK Kish to perform a polygraph: "He denied the things, so we will see who is telling the truth and who is not. We, RAAM, are an Arab-political force trying to integrate into Israeli politics and society. We are not interested in being in a quarrel or conflict with any political factor. But there are people who want to take us out of the process, and we will not allow them to do so."
He later responded to allegations in Ayala Hasson's investigation in Channel 13 News, about an alleged connection between the United Arab List and Hamas: "There is no connection between us and the Hamas movement." Nevertheless, a senior United Arab List official was documented at a conference in Gaza with a senior Hamas official. Abbas said: "You too can be with someone you do not know or have not invited."
According to him, the association in question "operates for 20 years, takes from the rich who donate and gives to the poor directly, only to poor orphaned and widowed citizens", and clarified: "All information is exposed to security officials. Does anyone want to tell us that the State of Israel is a banana state, that there are no security organizations and law enforcement agencies? "In this delusional article, there is no new information, everything is famous, everything was live and everything was during Netanyahu's time."
However, he refused to unequivocally deny that the association also transfers funds to families of terrorists. Asked about the issue, he replied: "We do not transfer money in suitcases of dollars, and you know who transferred it in the form of cash. The association has been operating for 20 years, for the last 12 years under Netanyahu's government."
The chairman of the United Arab List referred to the dramatic week in which the state budget will pass at the end of 3 years, and pledged: "The United Arab List faction is committed to the coalition. We will all vote in favor. "I trust all the members of United Arab List, they feel the responsibility and know that the whole of Arab society is waiting for this moment when the budget will be approved."