Arab Leader To Jordanian Media: ‘At Present We Can’t Take Weapons For Jihad, We Adopt Civilian Jihad’

JERUSALEM (VINnews) — During one of the long filibusters organized by the opposition in an attempt to thwart government legislators this week, MK Orit Struk (Religious Zionism) decided to expose the real colors of deputy speaker of the Knesset Mansour Abbas. Abbas, the leader of the Arab Ra’am party which for the first time is playing an active role in the government, has claimed that he is only interested in improving the lives of Israeli Arabs and has no nationalist aspirations. However Struk found a recent interview by Abbas with the Jordanian media in which he spoke in a different tone:

“Our patriotism is expressed in actions and not in slogans. Instead of slogans we send thousands of people in tens of buses daily to Al-Aqsa….the Islamic movement is an offshoot of  the Muslim brotherhood. It was established as a Jihad movement and after it became apparent that at present the possibility of taking arms and going to a Jihad is not relevant, the movement is involved in civil Jihad….when we speak about lands, housing and destruction of homes, is this a civilian issue? On the contrary, this is a national issue which is at the base of our struggle for our homeland.”

Struk added that “besides the story of [the wooden horse of] Troy which is more of a fable than history, I don’t know of any event in which a state brought in its enemies and gave them internal power in order that they can destroy it from within. Here Abbas, an enemy of the state, has ‘his hand on the steering wheel’ as Bennett said. This is why we are doing all we can to topple this dangerous government.”

ג'יהאד אזרחי. ומדינת כל אזרחיה.
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ולמה הממשלה שנשענת עליו – מסוכנת pic.twitter.com/PBqPZ1A38v

— אורית סטרוק (@oritstrock) June 29, 2021

The new Israeli government is set to meet its toughest challenge Monday when the Palestinian Reunification Law vote will take place. Interior Minister Ayelet Shaked said that no changes will be made to the law, which is fiercely opposed by Meretz and Raam despite their participation in the government. Likud leaders have said they will not help the government pass the law even if it means the law will fail and Palestinians will be allowed to claim citizenship simply by marrying Israelis. The Likud says a far more comprehensive law is required to prevent tens of thousands of Palestinians gaining citizenship through fictitious marriages.