
MK Waleed Taha (Ra’am) is demanding a return to the status quo that previously existed on the Temple Mount.
In an interview with the Kul al-Arab website on Monday, Taha said that the government should once again apply the situation that existed before 2000 (the outbreak of the Al-Aqsa Intifada) and ban the police from entering the Al-Aqsa Mosque.
Taha noted that Ra'am had joined the coalition to advance the interests of Arab society including in the matter of Al-Aqsa Mosque.
"There are matters related to Al-Aqsa in respect of which we play an influential role, but we do not speak to the media about those issues," Taha said.
The government, he claimed, is carefully considering its steps in accordance with the moves and positions of Ra’am.
Taha added that Ra’am does not want to be on the fringes of Israeli politics without influence, and therefore it has joined the coalition and is working to realize the demands of Arab society.
In the wake of the announcement that Ra’am would halt all cooperation with the Bennett government in the wake of the violent riots on the Temple Mount, Taha clarified that Ra’am is neither in the coalition nor the opposition and if its demands are not met the road to elections will be short.
Ra’am demands a government commitment to maintain the status quo on the Temple Mount along with accelerating the implementation of the five-year economic plan for Arab society, accelerating the recognition of unrecognized villages and accelerating the illegal arms collection operation in the Arab sector.