Challenge: A "Nelson Mandela" leader for Israel

[Baskilisk]

The challenge is, to have a Muslim Palestinian elected Prime Minister of a Hebrew dominated Israel, post 1950.

 

[yourworstnightmare]

Then it wouldn't be Israel anymore.

 

[False Dmitri]

The challenge is, to have a Muslim Palestinian elected Prime Minister of a Hebrew dominated Israel, post 1950.

Small (but significant!) definitional nitpick: you mean a "Muslim Israeli". A "Muslim Palestinian" is by definition not an Israeli citizen and could of course not be the Israeli PM.

Israel has several Arab members of the Knesset, has had an Arab judge on their Supreme Court since 2003, and had its first Arab cabinet minister, Raleb Majadele, sworn in in 2007. (http://www.csmonitor.com/2007/0201/p07s02-wome.html)

Majadele lost his Knesset seat and his ministry after this year's elections. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raleb_Majadele)

This might be helpful: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Arab_Israeli_politicians

I don't know how you could get any of these folks into the Premiership, but this might help get your bearings on the situation in OTL.

 

[Minchandre]

The situation is more like the US electing a black president than South Africa doing the same; the Israeli population in 1948 is ~15% Arab, not >70%. Even if we include the Palestinians, the population breakdown is about 2 million Jews to less than a million Arabs (there are now more Palestinians than Jewish Israelis, but that's because of birth rates, which are significantly higher for the Palestinians). That's still a strong Jewish majority, who largely view the Palestinians as being less educated and cultured.

 

[AmIndHistoryAuthor]

It seems to me what you ask for is more comparable to the US or Canada electing a national leader whose American Indian, perhaps circa 1870, some tribes defeated, others still resisting militarily.

I don't see the POD happening unless Israel loses its wars very badly, turning away from military solutions and domination.