Ahead of the vote on the state budget, United Arab List (Ra'am) Chairman MK Mansour Abbas turned to sources in the government and requested that 100 million shekel ($31,939,090) from his party's coalition funds be redirected to benefit the haredi community.
Speaking to Kan Reshet Bet, Abbas explained his request: "We are prioritizing transferring the funds according to the goals which are important to us. It's like friends - Ra'am needs to be in a coalition with the haredim."
In an interview with Kalman Liberman, Abbas added, "This is money that belongs to the Israeli taxpayer, to everyone. Ra'am is in the coalition and it has the right to give its opinion on the order of priorities. The process which we are leading in the party is for everyone's benefit."
MK Yakov Asher, from the Ashkenazic-haredi United Torah Judaism party, responded: "I say to Mansour Abbas, 'No, thank you.' Donate the money to Kupat Ha'ir."
MK Bezalel Smotrich, who heads the Religious Zionism party, said, "I call on my brothers in the haredi sector to not be seduced. When Abbas offers to give you 100 million shekel, it's one more stage in his Islamic ideology."