Ahmad Tibi
Ahmad TibiAvshalom Sassoni/Flash90

In an interview on Channel 13 News, MK Ahmad Tibi (Joint List) revealed his party's intentions going forward, now that MK Idit Silman has left the coalition without a majority.

"Our voters want to exert influence, but if we phrase the question in a more limited fashion, then they will express quite different views," he said. "If you ask them what they think of a government that destroys homes in the Negev, permits disturbances to those praying at the Al Aqsa mosque, allows Jews to enter it; a government that allows police to use violence at Damascus Gate, and that increases prices - then the level of support for exerting influence will drop to half. And why? Because our voters are intelligent people."

Asked what his party intends to do when the Likud opposition party introduces a no-confidence motion in the government, which if passed could propel Netanyahu back to the premiership, Tibi replied: "I would like to surprise you. I like this new situation very much, and I would also like to thank MK Silman for making things 60-60. Our position is now far stronger than it was a month ago - no doubt about it.

"We will be responding to each new piece of legislation on an ad hoc basis," he added. "We will not be joining the coalition and we will not be signing any agreements. If the government proposes a coronavirus grant tomorrow, we'll support it. If they propose increased grants to the settlements tomorrow, we'll overturn it. We are in a very sensitive position, and also a very influential one," he noted.

Tibi also expressed support for MK Ayman Odeh, who recently called for Arabs serving in the security forces to refuse orders and leave their positions. "The Joint List has always and will always oppose service in the forces of occupation," he said. "Nothing has changed there. Odeh himself stressed that he was not referring to police serving in within the Green Line but rather to those who subjugate the Palestinian people."