Some Party of Israel

Right-wing Camp

In the division of Israel's parties, Likud is now in the camp of right-wing parties. Likud party has placed diversity of party tendencies in itself and the party is between moderate parties and the extreme right-wing ones. Hathya, Tzomet, Mulydet and Yeud parties are considered racist parties and the most extremist right-wing parties.

Hathya Party

Hathya (Rastakhiz) is one of extreme sectarian parties that was formed in late 1979 by a group of political groups and supporters of settlement building in opposition with the Camp David agreement which signed by Israel and Egypt in May of that year. Trying to cancel the mentioned agreement, mobilization of public opinion against any withdrawal from the Sinai Peninsula and preventing any agreement in order to give autonomy to the West Bank at top of the goals of founders of the party. Religious and secular organizations participated in the party formation. Since 1978, the organizations created a unit front called treaty of faithful ones to the land of Israel and tried to put pressure on the Begin's government to prevent any withdrawal from the occupied territories. After signing the Camp David Accords, these organizations saw it a need to form a political party in order to strengthen cooperation between them and dealing with what was called as the beginning of moving away from Israeli fundamental ideals.
Several extremist right-wing political organizations and groups participated in formation of Hathya party and the most important ones are: Group of Professor Yufal Niemann, head of Tel Aviv University, the religious and pro-settlement policy Ghush Eemonym, Group of "faithful ones to the principles of Hirut" in Likud led by Ghiula Tohen and group "land of Israel movement" in Likud led by Moushi Shamir. Ghiula Cohen and Shamir Moushi were both members of the Likud parliamentary group, but as a protest against the signing of the Camp David, they both excluded from it. Hathya party was formed by propose of Yufal Niemann and after formation of the party, Niemann was adopted as leader. Rabbi Tesfy Judah Hekuhin Cook, head of Merkaz Heraf and spiritual leader of "Ghush Eemonim movement" by confirming Niemann's suggestion, played a fundamental role in the movement's participation in formation of Hathya party.
According to the founders of Hathya party considered Camp David agreement as a betrayal to fundamental ideals of Zionism and a threat to Israel's security and a sign to move backward in social, political and spiritual fields in community, government and state in Israel. The founders considered the party as the only remedy for going back to the basics of the Zionist movement, in accordance with their understanding of the principles and only in that way (according to them) the founders of the Zionist movement express the principles from different factions, including workers, liberal, right-wing, and religious fronts and ignore all these political and intellectual differences and disputes between them and tried to realize it. Founders of Hathya party accepted those basics of Zionist movement which had harmony with their intellectual and political view, and set them in the statement of announcing the party's formation. These principles include: the idea of territorial integrity of Israel; emphasize on the importance of Torah and Jewish culture in making nation; getting better in the immigration to Israel and the readiness to accept and endure hardship and sacrifice for building national home of the Jews, relying on military force in order to protect Israel; mistrusting the Palestinians and Arabs and lack of access to peace with them in the foreseeable future, as well as cooperation of religious and secular people within framework of a single party. Hathya is not only a political party in the eyes of its founders, but it is a rooted party and movement by the long-term goal revival of aspirations of the founders of the Zionist movement. The short-term goal of founding the party was rooting and spreading opposition to the withdrawal from the Sinai Peninsula and granting autonomy to the Palestinians, and creating momentum among the masses of people in order to achieve this goal.
Hathya party took part in Knesset elections (1981) and political program of the party in the elections consisted numerous issues, including: the abolition of the Camp David agreement; immediate annexation of the occupied territories. In this election, Hathya own three seats in the Knesset. With the approach of withdrawal time from Sinai, despite strong opposition from the government, the party's leaders tried to force people to stand, but they were unsuccessful. However, in 1982, after the Israeli invasion to Lebanon, it agreed to join Begin's cabinet and Yufal Niemann, Party's leader, was appointed as Minister of Science and Development and Head of Department of settlement building affairs' committee. Later, the committee agreed construction of more than 40 Jewish settlements (mainly in the West Bank).
In 1983, the resignation of Hanan Burat, who was one of the most prominent leaders of Ghush Eimunim, from membership of the Knesset and the party, shook Hathya limitedly. In 1984, Borat founded religious Mtsad party which was a sectarian extremist tendency with a group of members of the movement. Rafael Eitan, the chief of Israeli armed forces, joined to a group of kibbutz members and Mushafym (supporters of idea of Greater Israel Land) shortly before the elections in 1984 to the Hathya party, compensated withdrawal of Borat. Eitan and the mentioned group created a new organization called Tzomet. In the eleventh Knesset elections, Hathya party acquired 5 seats, and it became as the third largest party in the Knesset after MeRakah and Likud. However, due to protesting against predicted restrictions on the construction of new Jewish settlements, it refused to participate in a coalition cabinet.
After joining Tzomet to Hathya, the internal situation of the party turned into tension and unrest due to meeting Mostofian Rafael Eitan and Ghyula Cohen. Having a different mentality and perspective on things was the main source of difference between Eitan and Cohen. While Eitan is one of the survivors of Balmah organizations and leftist Zionist movement of workers, Ghyula is from survivors of hidden and terrorist organization of Leihy and the reformist right-wing movement. Confrontation of the two in 1987 led to conflicts and bias against one another and each one accused the other one for lack of trying to force Israel to expand settlement activity in the regions; Tzomet Party used its fans and supporters in the sensitive area and thus to dominate the party shortly before the 1988 elections, Tzomet party exited Hathya. In the mentioned elections, Hathya won 3 seats and Tzomet won 2 seats in the Knesset.
In the last parliamentary elections (1992), Hathya emphasized in its political program on granting autonomy to the Palestinians, immediate incorporation of the West Bank and Gaza Strip to Israeli sovereignty and the expansion of settlement activity in them, crackdown on the uprising of the Palestinian people (Intifada), more decisive confrontation with the Palestinians and their institutions and transferring Palestinian refugees in the West Bank and Gaza strip to Arab countries and their permanent settlement in the countries. But among horror and disbelief of political circles, the party could not win the minimum percentage of required votes to enter the Knesset (1/5% of all voters) and none of the candidates could reach the Knesset. Following this defeat, Yufal Niemann resigned from the presidency of the party and put politics aside. At the late 1995, the situation was extremely precarious and he had almost no political activities.
The number of seats of the Party in the Knesset in different periods: the tenth Knesset (1981) 3 seats; the eleventh Knesset (1984) 5 seats; the twelfth Knesset (1988) 3 seats.

Yeud Party

Yeud (Treaty) is one of the heavily ethnic-oriented right-wing parties, which was founded in February 1994 by three members of the Knesset called Ghunyn Syghef, Aleix Gould Farb & Steer Selmoftys. The three members of the Knesset separated from the party because of conflicts with Rafael Eitan, Tzomet Party's leader, along with a number of their supporters. This group accused one of the leaders of Tzomet Party to committing fraud, but Eitan rejected these accusations, and made aggressive objection to them and this led to separation of them from Party. Three isolated members first created an independent group in the Knesset and then founded a party called Yeud. Interim Secretariat of the party elected Syghef as head the party, Gould Farb as head of the parliamentary group and Selmoftis as the head of Central Committee.
Yeud party despite focus on its political on "Integrity of land of Israel" remained the way open to join the coalition cabinet of Yitzhak Rabin. In the first half of 1994, in the negotiations of representatives of the party with the representatives of the Labor Party, the parties agreed Yeud to join the cabinet and the deal was realized later.

Arabic parties

In addition to the Zionist parties, we have a number of parties, political groups and local and country associations in Palestinian parts of Israel. Most of these organizations have come into existence in the past two decades and following a set of political, economic, social and cultural changes that over time surround life of the Arabs living in Israel.
Among the various political groups, only three groups of Rakah (or Hadash) are the leading list to peace and the Arab Democratic Party have political party's characteristics. First and third parties are present in the current Knesset (Knesset XIII) but the second party's candidates have not been able to enter Knesset due to not reaching quorum of votes obtained in the general election of 1992. In addition to the three parties, there are two other organizations that cannot be considered as a political party and they do not contribute in the Knesset elections; the two organizations are: the sons of the homeland and the Islamic Movement. There are also several trade unions seeking to achieve the objectives of their respective classes, although the unions have sometimes attempted to do purely political activities. The most important unions are: country Committee of the chairs of local councils (founded in 1974), the Committee of State for Defense of the Land (1975), country union of Arab students (1975) and the Committee of following issues of Arab citizens (1980) ; here we will just discuss about the organizations of the first and second groups.

A point about Labor Party

In recent years, the Labor Party has accepted the system of primary elections to choose the party leader and candidate of party for prime minister and parliamentary candidates and a number of important posts of the Party and the government. By this, the Labor Party took an important step towards democracy and an end to monopoly and dominance of a few elites over the party leadership and competent and efficient youth and a number of members of the party that their rights were violated for years found an opportunity to improve their position in the party and to achieve high-level positions.
The name of Labor Party current members in the Cabinet (in late 1995): Shimon Peres, Prime Minister and Defense Minister, Ehud Barak, Abraham Shumet, Israel Kysar, Mykha Herysh, David Libayi, Mosh Shahal, Binyamin Ben Olieizer, Oranmir, Shimon Shitrit, Ozy Ber Aam, Jacob Tsar, Ephraim Sineh, Jim Ramon and Yossi Beilin.
The number of Labor Party's candidates at the seventh Knesset (1969) was 47 people (of 56 from MeRakah); the eighth Knesset (1973) was 43 people (of 51 from MeRakah); the ninth Knesset (1977) was 28 people (of 32 from MeRakah); the tenth Knesset (1981) was 40 people (of 47 from MeRakah): the eleventh Knesset (1984) was 38 people (of 44 from MeRakah); the twelfth Knesset (1988) was 39 and the Thirteen Knesset (1992) was 44 people.