Hadash-Ta'al head Ayman Odeh to leave Israeli politics

MAY 16, 2023 20:04

Updated: MAY 16, 2023 21:00

MK Ayman Odeh speaks during a faction meeting, at the Knesset, the Israeli parliament in Jerusalem, on February 6, 2023. (photo credit: YONATAN SINDEL/FLASH90) — MK Ayman Odeh speaks during a faction meeting, at the Knesset, the Israeli parliament in Jerusalem, on February 6, 2023.

(photo credit: YONATAN SINDEL/FLASH90)

"Thank you all from the bottom of my heart," he wrote on Facebook. "I have decided not to run for the next term of the Knesset."

Hadash-Ta'al chairman Ayman Odeh announced his retirement from political life in a video message released on his social media on Tuesday night.

"Thank you all from the bottom of my heart," he wrote on Facebook. "I have decided not to run for the next term of the Knesset. I will seek with you to build the largest unit based on the political program that brought us to 15 seats [in 2020], to our collective and true sense of power. Thank you thank you all for every moment of the last 8 years."

חלק תפקידו של משרת ציבור הוא לדעת מתי לקחת צעד אחורה כדי להסתכל על התמונה הגדולה. לכן קיבלתי היום את אחת ההחלטות הקשות בחיי: בסיום הקדנציה הזאת לא אתמודד בבחירות הבאות לכנסת. pic.twitter.com/OQHvI8mcdQ
— איימן עודה أيمن عودة Ayman Odeh (@AyOdeh) May 16, 2023

Bringing in new blood

"He wants to bring in new blood and refresh the political landscape," sources close to Odeh told Maariv. "He understands that there is currently no possibility of uniting the Arab parties... so he is taking action and making room [for new people]."

Odeh is credited with founding the Joint List, a conglomeration of Arab parties that landed a record 15 seats in the 2020 Knesset.

Hadash leader Ayman Odeh casts his ballot at a voting station in Hafia, during the Knesset Elections, on November 1, 2022. (credit: RONI OFER/FLASH90)

This is a developing story.