Coalition advances bid to disqualify Ra'am over alleged terror links

Officials close to Prime Minister Netanyahu pushed forward a legal and political effort to designate Ra'am's parent body, the Southern Faction of the Islamic Movement, as a terrorist organization, a step that would bar both the party and chairman Mansour Abbas from the ballot. The push is rooted in allegations that the Southern Faction transferred funds to Gaza in a manner that could have supported Hamas. Israel previously outlawed the Northern Faction of the same movement in 2015.