PA pressure, party fractures, and a security debate: Israeli politics churns

Ramallah pushes Arab parties to reunite as MKs defect and a Shin Bet committee weighs protection for opposition leaders.

PA pressure, party fractures, and a security debate: Israeli politics churns — Senior Palestinian Authority officials, led by Mahmoud Abbas, exerted heavy pressure on the leaders of Hadash, Ta'al, and Balad on Saturday to reunite the Joint List, warning against allowing Benjamin Netanyahu to return to power. A senior PA official said in talks in Ramallah: "We must not repeat the mistakes of the previous elections and allow Netanyahu to return to power. You are missing a historic opportunity for our people because of internal quarrels."[^1] The push comes after a Channel 12 poll from last Monday gave the Joint List 7 seats compared to 4 for Ra'am, suggesting a united Arab slate could outperform the split parties. Meanwhile, party defections continue to reshape the electoral map. MK Sharon Nir informed Yisrael Beiteinu chairman Avigdor Lieberman on Saturday evening that she will not run in the elections for the 26th Knesset, following MK Dan Illouz's departure from Likud to join Yisrael Beiteinu last Wednesday.[^2] On the right, Netanyahu called on Friday for Ben Gvir and Smotrich to meet with him to promote a joint run, but the response has been skeptical — Otzma Yehudit chairman Ben Gvir reportedly pushed back, saying "My name is Itamar Ben Gvir, not Benny Gantz."[^3] Tomorrow (Sunday), the Shin Bet public advisory committee will convene to discuss security protection requests for Yashar chairman Gadi Eisenkot and Democrats chairman Yair Golan.[^4] The timing underscores a broader tension: Ben-Dror Yemini has argued that instead of investing in AI-generated hasbara, Israel should focus on locating and arresting hooligans in Judea and Samaria, such as those who broke into a home in Qusra.[^5] The question is whether the security establishment can pivot from political protection to policing settler violence before the next crisis. Federal court strikes down Trump visa revocations over pro-Palestinian speech — Judge Noel Wise, a federal judge in the United States District Court in San Jose, California, ruled that laws promoted by the Trump administration to revoke visas due to pro-Palestinian activity are unconstitutional. [^1] The ruling was issued in a lawsuit