Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and the right-wing bloc suffered a major blow on Monday evening when in a surprise move, the Islamist Ra’am party voted against the Likud proposal on the Knesset’s Arrangements Committee, ceding control of the powerful committee to the opposition.

The Arrangements Committee, the first Knesset committee that is formed following an election and the key to determining the legislative itinerary in the new Knesset, runs the Knesset until the new government is formed. The members of the Arrangements Committee decide which Knesset committees will be formed and who will head them, smoothing the way for the advancement of legislation such as a law preventing anyone under criminal indictment from serving as prime minister.

The Islamist Ra’am Party, which was expected to vote in favor of the Likud proposal, turned around at the last minute and voted against it, handing the key Knesset panel and ropes of power to the anti-Netanyahu camp.

Ra’am chairman Mansour Abbas planned his surprise vote together with Yesh Atid chairman Yair Lapid earlier in the day. Four Ra’am MKs stood outside the plenum while the vote was taking place, acting as if they had decided to abstain from the vote. But at the last minute, they entered the plenum and voted against the Likud proposal, allowing the Yesh Atid proposal to gain a majority.

Lapid dangled several enticing offers to Ra’am in exchange for their support, including a position on the Knesset’s Finance Committee and the deputy Knesset speaker position for one of its members, if he succeeds in forming a government.

Betzalel Smotrich, chairman of the Religious Zionism party, was quick to say “I told you so,” reiterating his opinion that it’s impossible to form a government by relying on an Arab party.

However, it seems as if it was because of Smotrich that Ra’am made its decision to vote in favor of the anti-Netanyahu camp, with Abbas telling Channel 12 News that he voted against the right-wing camp due to inflammatory statements made by the Religious Zionism party against Ra’am, such as the party being “terror supporters.”

Meanwhile, the parties in the anti-Netanyahu camp say they are close to finalizing agreements on forming a coalition, Channel 13 News reported.

The coalition would be comprised of parties from the left to the right, with outside support from Arab parties, with “anybody but Bibi” being the one ideology uniting them.

Following the Likud’s defeat on the Arrangements Committee vote, former Likud coalition whip and staunch Netanyahu ally MK Miki Zohar said that he “understands that we’re on the way to the opposition.”

“Netanyahu will head the opposition,” he said. “We’ll go with our heads held high.”

Zohar still maintains his position as chairman of the Arrangement Committee but members of the anti-Netanyahu bloc outnumber the pro-Netanyahu members, granting control of the key committee to Netanyahu’s rivals.

(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)