Joint List leader Jabareen hints at negotiations with Eisenkot bloc, lists demands for cooperation

Leader of the Arab Joint List party, MK Yousef Jabareen, outlined several of his party's demands to the Gadi Eisenkot-led bloc on Friday, hinting at informal negotiations taking place as the race to form a government continues.Among the demands listed by Jabareen were repealing the Kaminitz Law, which allows for illegally constructed Arab homes to be demolished; a comprehensive plan to tackle violence and crime in Arab communities; and a five-year economic development plan for Arab towns and villages.In addition, Jabareen mentioned several specific economic issues to be included in the demands, including creating jobs, developing industrial zones, and advancing housing projects for young couples.As part of these demands, discussion circled around the potential establishment of a new Knesset committee which would focus on the Arab community's economic and social issues.Arab parties in ongoing contact with UTJ over Eisenkot bloc negotiationsOn Thursday, KAN News reported that leaders of Ra'am and the Joint List are in ongoing contact with senior officials from the ultra-Orthodox United Torah Judaism party, keeping each other updated on negotiations with the Eisenkot-led bloc looking to oust Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.MK Mansour Abbas reportedly suggested that joint talks could give legitimacy to a more lenient arrangement on the issue across the political spectrum, while also positioning UTJ as a potential "kingmaker."