Ra'am chairman Mansour Abbas has cut off contact with the leaders of the coalition. Kan 11 News reported on Sunday that Abbas is furious at the conduct of Prime Minister Naftali Bennett and his coalition partners regarding Ra’am’s demands vis-à-vis the Al-Aqsa Mosque, and has not been answering their telephone calls.
On Saturday, Abbas sought to coordinate with the King of Jordan the moves on the Temple Mount. According to a senior member of the coalition, the crisis with Ra’am is serious and close to being irreversible.
On Sunday night, Bennett convened the leaders of the parties and factions without Abbas in attendance. At the meeting, it was agreed that MK Boaz Toporovsky (Yesh Atid) will serve as the acting chairman of the coalition until a permanent replacement is appointed.
Bennett said during the meeting, "We have a national responsibility and we are committed to continuing to maintain this government. It would be irresponsible to deteriorate the State of Israel into elections and chaos at this time. The continued existence of the government depends on each and every one of us and together we can succeed."
On Saturday night, Abbas said that his party's position in the coalition regarding the Al-Aqsa Mosque would be made in accordance with the results of an upcoming Jordanian-Israeli international summit.
In an Arabic-language Facebook post, Abbas wrote, "I have informed the Prime Minister and the Alternate Prime Minister that this clear and decisive position has changed after I met with the King of Jordan. The demands and positions regarding the Al-Aqsa Mosque will be accepted and conducted by the King of Jordan, Abdullah II, who is the sponsor of the Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Holy Places in Jerusalem. The permanent solution is to end the occupation and establish a Palestinian state in the West Bank and Gaza, with its capital in Jerusalem, in the heart of which is the Al-Aqsa Mosque."