TEL AVIV — Ayman Odeh, the leader of an Arab-Israeli faction in the Knesset, told Al-Monitor that Israel is facing what he described as “an existential threat from within,” saying the country is “ruled by fascists” who must be prevented from remaining in power.

Odeh said his faction, Hadash-Ta’al, could support opposition parties from outside the government in order to block another Netanyahu-led coalition.

With Israel's elections scheduled for the end of October, public opinion polls have consistently pointed to another political stalemate. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's bloc is projected to win between 50 and 53 seats in the 120-member Knesset. In theory, the opposition could assemble a majority coalition with the backing of Arab parties. However, opposition leaders Naftali Bennett, Yair Lapid and Gadi Eisenkot have ruled out cooperating with the Arab parties, which polls suggest would win at least 10 seats.

Since 2000, Arab society in Israel has experienced a sharp rise in violence driven by the proliferation of organized crime. A 2021 Knesset Research and Information Center report estimated that there were some 400,000 illegal firearms in the Arab community. At least 252 Arab Israelis were killed in 2025, followed by another 143 deaths since the beginning of 2026, as of Monday.