{
  "id": 9580015,
  "title": "Arab parties barred from Israel’s elections but not the far right",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/24/arab-parties-barred-from-israels-elections-but-not-the-far-right",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-09-24T16:07:13.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The National Business",
    "slug": "the-national-business",
    "url": "https://www.thenationalnews.com/news/mena/2026/09/24/arab-parties-barred-from-israels-elections-but-not-the-far-right/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "In recent developments, Israel's Central Elections Committee has completed hearings examining motions to exclude certain politicians and parties from upcoming elections. The committee's decisions highlight the dominant influence of Israel's far-right political landscape. Only Arab politicians and one far-left Jewish politician faced bans, while coalition parties, known for their support of policies such as the total destruction and resettlement of Gaza, were cleared. Additionally, the Zionist center-left party, The Democrats, was not barred. Despite opposition parties potentially needing the Arab bloc for forming an opposition government, many supported the bans. Ofer Cassif, a far-left Jewish politician from the United Arab List, and Sami Abu Shehadeh, a Palestinian-Israeli politician from the Joint List, will not participate in the elections. They and their respective parties were disqualified due to various allegations, including rejecting Israel as a Jewish and democratic state, advocating for armed struggle against Israel, and inciting racism. All parties contested these grounds for their disqualification. The Supreme Court may overturn the committee's choices in upcoming hearings. However, the court is under significant pressure, as Israel's far-right coalition, led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, seeks to weaken the judiciary, which it accuses of undermining democracy. Adalah, a prominent Israeli legal and human rights organization, decried the process as arbitrary, inciting, and racist, resulting in the disqualification of all Palestinian representation in the Knesset. Ofer Cassif, in a previous statement, warned that the fascist right aims to silence alternative voices, especially the Arab voice, and cautioned against their potential long-term dominance.",
  "summary": "After a busy few days, Israel’s Central Elections Committee has concluded hearings on motions to disqualify politicians and political parties from the coming elections. As with so much recent news from the country, the committee’s decisions are another clear sign of how successful, perhaps unstoppable, Israel ’s far right has become. Only Arab politicians, and one far-left Jewish politician, have…",
  "key_points": [
    "Only Arab politicians and one far-left Jewish politician banned from elections.",
    "Far-right coalition seeks to weaken judiciary accused of undermining democracy.",
    "Adalah denounces process as arbitrary, inciting, and racist."
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "The National UAE",
        "title": "Arab parties barred from Israel’s elections but not the far right",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/24/arab-parties-barred-from-israels-elections-but-not-the-far-right-9583168",
        "published": "2026-09-24T16:07:13.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}