The recent spate of violence between Arabs and Jews in mixed cities should not end chances of forming a coalition that has the support of Jewish and Arab MKs, Ra'am (United Arab List) head Mansour Abbas said in an interview with Army Radio on Thursday morning.
Abbas told interviewers Udi Segal and Keren Marciano that he stopped coalition talks, because they would be inappropriate in such a sensitive time. But he said they would be restarted immediately after the escalation ends.
"I am not giving up on future cooperation," Abbas said. "It could be that these incidents emphasize the need for true partnership with understanding, initiating together."
Abbas went further, saying that a partnership of Jews and Arabs was "a goal in itself" and not merely "an instrument to something else."
The Ra'am leader said "protests are legitimate" but must be done within the law and without harming anyone.
Abbas spoke after sources in the bloc trying to replace Netanyahu warned that if the IDF operation continued for another week, they could lose Abbas's support and end chances of them forming a government.