Israel's Knesset election sees highest turnout in 45 years, with large Arab voter presence at polling centres

Voting in Israel's Knesset parliamentary election on Tuesday was the highest in 45 years. From the morning, ordinary Israelis began going to polling centres in large numbers to cast their votes.

The presence of Arab voters at the polling centres was striking. Arab Israelis had stayed away from voting in the past, but this time they are exercising their right to vote, the report said.

Israel votes under a proportional representation (PR) system, so every vote is important. Under this system, the party that receives more votes gets more seats in parliament.

Seeing the Arab presence at the polling centres, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his allies have become fearful. Netanyahu and his allies say that if Arabs vote in such large numbers, the pro-Israel camp will fall. They are therefore now urging Jewish voters to go to the polling centres.

In a post on X, Netanyahu wrote that buses carrying Palestinian Israelis were heading towards polling centres and that long lines were being reported in Arab areas.

National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, meanwhile, went to the Arab town of Kafr Qasim and released a video. In it he told right-wing voters to vote in greater numbers than the Arabs. He said: 'If you want Israel to remain Jewish and Zionist, go and vote.'