Israel's crumbling coalition has been further hit as another member of its parliament has resigned, leaving Prime Minister Naftali Bennett in charge of a minority government.
In a letter to Mr Bennett, Ghaida Rinawie Zoabi from the Meretz party said she was leaving Israel's coalition because it too often adopted nationalist positions on issues of importance to the Palestinian citizens of Israel who make up her constituents.
The announcement further weakens Mr Bennett’s hold on Israel’s 120-seat parliament, reducing the coalition to 59 seats. Two other legislators from his own party have already quit.
“Enough. I cannot continue to support a coalition that in such a shameful way hounds the society from which I came,” she said.
She cited Israel’s conduct at Jerusalem’s Al Aqsa Mosque, which in recent weeks has been the site of clashes between police and protesters, and the beating by police of pallbearers at the funeral of Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh, shot while covering confrontations between Israeli forces and Palestinians.
Ms Zoabi’s departure further raises the possibility of new parliamentary elections, less than a year after the government took office.
Mr Bennett’s government remains in power, but it is now even more hamstrung in parliament and will probably struggle to function.
Mr Bennett, who leads a small, hard-line nationalist party, heads a coalition of eight ideologically diverse factions, from those that support Palestinian statehood to nationalist parties and, for the first time in Israeli history, Israeli Arabs in Mansour Abbas's United Arab List.
They came together last June with little in common other than their drive to oust former leader Benjamin Netanyahu, who now heads the opposition.
As part of their union, the parties agreed to set aside divisive issues, such as Palestinian statehood, and focus instead on topics such as the coronavirus pandemic and the economy.
Despite the differences among the coalition, it has managed to pass a budget, navigate the pandemic and strengthen relations with both the US Biden administration and Israel’s Arab allies.
But a wave of Israeli-Palestinian tensions, set off by several deadly Palestinian attacks against Israel and Israeli arrest raids in the occupied West Bank, and fuelled by repeated clashes between Israeli police and Palestinian protesters at Al Aqsa, has shaken the coalition’s stability.
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Role Model: Sheikh Zayed, God bless his soul
Favorite book: Zayed Biography of the leader
Favorite quote: To be or not to be, that is the question, from William Shakespeare's Hamlet
Favorite food: seafood
Favorite place to travel: Lebanon
Favorite movie: Braveheart
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Terror attacks in Paris, November 13, 2015
- At 9.16pm, three suicide attackers killed one person outside the Atade de France during a foootball match between France and Germany
- At 9.25pm, three attackers opened fire on restaurants and cafes over 20 minutes, killing 39 people
- Shortly after 9.40pm, three other attackers launched a three-hour raid on the Bataclan, in which 1,500 people had gathered to watch a rock concert. In total, 90 people were killed
- Salah Abdeslam, the only survivor of the terrorists, did not directly participate in the attacks, thought to be due to a technical glitch in his suicide vest
- He fled to Belgium and was involved in attacks on Brussels in March 2016. He is serving a life sentence in France
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Premier Futsal 2017 Finals
Al Wasl Football Club; six teams, five-a-side
Delhi Dragons: Ronaldinho
Bengaluru Royals: Paul Scholes
Mumbai Warriors: Ryan Giggs
Chennai Ginghams: Hernan Crespo
Telugu Tigers: Deco
Kerala Cobras: Michel Salgado
Indoor cricket in a nutshell
Indoor Cricket World Cup - Sept 16-20, Insportz, Dubai
16 Indoor cricket matches are 16 overs per side
8 There are eight players per team
9 There have been nine Indoor Cricket World Cups for men. Australia have won every one.
5 Five runs are deducted from the score when a wickets falls
4 Batsmen bat in pairs, facing four overs per partnership
Scoring In indoor cricket, runs are scored by way of both physical and bonus runs. Physical runs are scored by both batsmen completing a run from one crease to the other. Bonus runs are scored when the ball hits a net in different zones, but only when at least one physical run is score.
Zones
A Front net, behind the striker and wicketkeeper: 0 runs
B Side nets, between the striker and halfway down the pitch: 1 run
C Side nets between halfway and the bowlers end: 2 runs
D Back net: 4 runs on the bounce, 6 runs on the full
Global state-owned investor ranking by size
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United States
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China
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UAE
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Japan
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Norway
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Canada
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Singapore
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Australia
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Saudi Arabia
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South Korea
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