Sami Abu Shehadeh, a prominent leader of the Arab Israeli political party Balad, withdrew his candidacy for the upcoming legislative elections on October 27 after facing pressure from the Israeli Supreme Court. The court had been asked to review his case following a request from Itamar Ben Gvir, Israel’s far-right minister of national security, who had urged the Israeli Central Election Commission to exclude him from the election. This request came after Abu Shehadeh wrote an article in which he described the Hamas attacks on October 7, 2023, as an “important historical event.” Although he denied supporting the attacks, his comments were widely criticized, leading to his disqualification. The Israeli Supreme Court examined an appeal from Abu Shehadeh to challenge the decision but did not issue a ruling. Instead, it suggested that he voluntarily withdraw his candidacy. The court reportedly told him that most of its members supported his exclusion and gave him until Friday morning to decide. Abu Shehadeh ultimately withdrew to avoid an official disqualification, which Balad warned could have “serious consequences for the political and parliamentary life” of the country. The Israeli human rights organization Adalah, which has been defending Abu Shehadeh, criticized the court for effectively disqualifying him by pressuring him to withdraw. It called this a “major violation of the right of Palestinian citizens to be represented and to be candidates in elections.” Adalah also stated that none of the evidence presented against Abu Shehadeh suggested any support for violence. In addition to Abu Shehadeh, the election commission had also excluded two major Arab Israeli lists from the elections: the United Arab List and the Unified List, which includes Balad as one of its coalition parties. The Supreme Court will continue to review their appeals on Friday. Israeli Arabs, also known as Palestinians of Israel, make up about 20% of the population and largely identify as Palestinians. They are descendants of the Arab population of Palestine who remained in Israeli territory after the creation of the state of Israel in 1948. Many of them claim to face discrimination from the Jewish majority. Political analysts note that Arab Israeli parties often play a key role in shaping the outcome of elections, as no clear majority is expected in this vote. While Abu Shehadeh’s withdrawal ends his candidacy, Balad stated that he will continue to lead the party and his political efforts are not over.