Haaretz Editor Noa Landau Urges Israel Opposition to Partner With Arab Parties

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By TRH World Desk

Landau says Arab citizens have sent an unmistakable message through their voting and urges opposition leaders to begin immediate negotiations with Arab parties to build a shared political future.

New Delhi, October 28, 2026 — Haaretz Global Editor Noa Landau has urged Israel’s opposition leaders to enter immediate negotiations with Arab political parties, warning that excluding Arab voters from a possible political alternative would undermine democratic principles and risk allowing racism to prevail.

In a video statement, Landau said a clear majority of Israelis had voted against the government led by Benjamin Netanyahu. She highlighted the participation of Arab citizens of Israel, describing their electoral turnout as an extraordinary achievement.

“These results make one thing clear,” Landau said, pointing to the message sent by Arab voters: “We are an inseparable part of this country.”

Landau argued that any political bloc commanding more than 61 seats should, under normal circumstances, welcome the opportunity to unseat Netanyahu. She said cooperation with Arab citizens was important not only for practical political reasons but also as a matter of principle for a camp that describes itself as democratic.

“For a so-called democratic camp, it’s supposed to be very important to include the Arab citizens as strategic partners in the future,” she said.

However, Landau warned that opposition leaders could discard the votes of Arab citizens because of their political identity, despite their potential importance in building an alternative to Netanyahu’s government.

She blamed what she described as the racist rules of the political game dictated by Netanyahu for creating a risk that even opposition leaders would exclude Arab parties.

“That would be a slap in the face of those who came in droves to vote,” she said.

Landau called on the leaders of the opposition’s so-called change bloc to begin immediate negotiations with the heads of Arab parties. She argued that they had both a moral and a political obligation to engage with Arab representatives, noting that Netanyahu himself negotiates with them when it suits his interests.

Her appeal centred on the need to recognise Arab citizens as legitimate political partners and their votes as an integral part of Israel’s democratic process.

Landau ended her statement with a warning to opposition leaders over the consequences of excluding Arab parties from efforts to form a political alternative.

“Racism must not be allowed to win these elections,” she said.