The leadership of the Joint Lis, including the alliance’s chairman, Prof. Yousef Jabareen, MK Dr. Ahmad Tibi, and former MK Sami Abu Shehadeh, alongside Hadash MK Ofer Cassif and Joint List candidate Jafar Farah (Hadash), met in Tel-Aviv on Thursday, August 20, with more than twenty European Union ambassadors to Israel. This marks the Joint List’s first diplomatic meeting since the announcement of its formation.

Prof. Yousef Jabareen explains the goals of the Joint List at the meeting with European diplomats in Tel Aviv, Thursday, August 20, 2026 (Photo: Zo Haderekh)

The meeting focused on the role of the Joint List in the current political landscape, the need to increase voter turnout and strengthen the political representation of the Arab-Palestinian citizens in Israel as well democratic Jews, as well as attempts to disqualify candidates, bar the Joint List from running, and undermine the legitimacy of Arab political representation and democratic forces.

The participants also discussed the expansion of settlements in the occupied West Bank and the escalation of settler terrorism against Palestinians under the auspices of the occupation army, alongside far-right government policies that defy the international community and diminish the prospects for a just peace in the Middle East.

The Joint List delegation also presented the core challenges facing the Arab-Palestinian national minority in Israel to the ambassadors, including violence and organized crime, the housing and land crisis, house demolitions, the non-recognition of Arab-Bedouin villages in the Negev, and the persistent budget disparities affecting Arab localities in education, development, industry, and social services.

At the conclusion of the meeting, the Joint List representatives emphasized the importance of increased EU involvement in combating racism, defending democracy and human rights, promoting a just peace, and ending the occupation of all the Palestinian, Syrian and Lebanese territories.

Related: https://maki.org.il/en/?p=33540