Israeli election rivals Netanyahu and Eisenkot both reject Palestinian statehood
Mansour Abbas, leader of the United Arab List (Ra’am), claimed Palestine already exists as a state recognised by most of the world
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and opposition leader Gadi Eisenkot have both pledged to block the creation of a Palestinian state if they win the upcoming Knesset elections.
Their statements come ahead of the October vote, following comments by Mansour Abbas, leader of the United Arab List (Ra’am), who asserted that Palestine already exists as a state recognised by most of the world.
“As long as I am prime minister, there will be no Palestinian state controlled by Iran—neither in Gaza nor in Judea and Samaria,” Netanyahu declared, after Abbas called on Israel and the United States to recognize Palestine.
Speaking at Ra’am’s general conference, Abbas said that Arab citizens of Israel could serve as “a bridge to peace.”
He added, “The State of Palestine exists and is recognised by most of the world, except for the United States and Israel. We want them to recognise it too, and we are working to achieve peace and reconciliation, an end to the occupation, and an end to the conflict.”
Yashar party leader Eisenkot also issued a categorical rejection: “There is no Palestinian state, and under a government we form, no Palestinian state will be established,” he wrote on X.
A former IDF chief of staff, Eisenkot has repeatedly distanced himself from any proposals for Palestinian statehood during the campaign.
Opinion polls indicate that Likud and its coalition partners are projected to fall short of the 61 seats needed to form a government after the October 27 election.
A Channel 13 poll published on August 19 gave Netanyahu’s Likud and its far-right and ultra-Orthodox allies a combined 51 seats—ten short of a parliamentary majority.
Eisenkot, a former member of Netanyahu’s war cabinet, has emerged as the prime minister’s main challenger ahead of the election.
He founded the Yashar party last year amid growing dissatisfaction with Netanyahu’s handling of the aftermath of the October 7, 2023 Hamas attack and the ensuing war in Gaza.
Netanyahu also sought to portray Abbas as a potential partner of Eisenkot, Avigdor Lieberman, and Chilli Tropper, accusing them of courting Arab party support while alienating Likud voters.
“The cost of a left-wing coalition with the Muslim Brotherhood has been exposed again,” he said.