Mansour Abbas
Mansour AbbasTomer Neuberg/Flash90

MK Mansour Abbas, the chairman of the Ra’am Party which represents the southern faction of the Islamic Movement in the Knesset, once again calls on the Arab public in Israel to vote for the Arab parties in the upcoming Knesset elections.

In an article published on Thursday on the Israeli Arab website Kul al-Arab, Abbas sought to clarify a Facebook post he published recently in which he called on the Arab public to vote for the Arab parties.

“Just as in Israel the Jewish parties compete with each other but in the end they all serve the interest of Jewish society,” said Abbas, “so should the Arab parties behave as they all agree on the interest of the Arab society.”

The Knesset, he stated “is one of several arenas in which Arab society can be served, and in this context there is importance to the division of the roles in activity on the field and activity in the Knesset.”

He noted that the activity of the institutions of the Islamic Movement, which complements the activity of Ra'am in the Knesset.

Based on the same logic, Abbas pointed out, it can be said that the Arab parties which represent different political lines complement each other.

"Pluralism and the acceptance of the opinions of others and the division of roles are basic conditions for the revival of our society," Abbas said. "Regardless of the differences of opinion between us as people and as parties, if you want to advance the affairs of the Arabs in the Israeli political equation, you must vote for the Arabs."