Forming a government with Ra'am will be a crying shame for generations | Dr. Esther Luzzatto

Dr. Esther Luzzatto, in an opinion piece in Ma'ariv, calls for not forming a government with Ra'am, arguing that such a step would endanger sovereignty and governance in the Negev and constitute a 'crying shame for generations.' She describes phenomena of illegal construction, illegal weapons, crime, and protection rackets in Bedouin society, and calls on the Zionist parties to form a national unity government.

Dr. Esther Luzzatto, in an opinion piece in Ma'ariv, calls for not forming a government with Ra'am, arguing that such a step would be a 'crying shame for generations' and endanger sovereignty and governance in the Negev. According to her, Ra'am is a movement that is a daughter of the Islamic Movement and a sister to the Muslim Brotherhood, with a radical agenda that does not recognize Israel's right to exist as a Jewish state. She quotes the party's platform supporting the right of return and warns of loss of governance in the Negev, describing phenomena of illegal construction, illegal weapons (according to the Rifman Institute, over 100,000 weapons), organized crime, protection rackets, smuggling from the Egyptian border, polygamy and human trafficking, and road bullying. Luzzatto calls on the Zionist parties to form a national unity government, warning that loss of the Negev is loss of the state.