Mansour Abbas, the head of the Islamist Ra’am party who in 2021 became the first Arab Israeli party chief to join a ruling coalition, said Wednesday that he would likely run in the next Knesset elections but then quit national politics.

“Better to serve, to come and try to do things, and [then] to give an opportunity [for someone else],” he told the Knesset Channel,

The lawmaker said that when he was first elected to the parliament, “I came in with an agenda,” noting that it “evolved” over time.

“I came in with an agenda to deal with crime and violence in Arab society; it evolved into an agenda of influence and values-based civic partnership, and today you can add to that [the goal of] achieving peace and an end to the [Israeli-Palestinian] conflict, etc.

“I have one more chance, and I’ll run — probably — in the next elections, and try to take action to realize the goals I’ve set out for myself in the coming term, and then, I don’t think I should continue to be a Knesset member,” he said.

Israel is next set to hold elections in October 2026, though they could occur before then if the government collapses.

Abbas’s Islamist Ra’am party made a landmark,........

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