Walid Haj Yahia

Walid Haj Yahia (, ; 1936 – 21 March 2015), also known as Walid Sadik, was an Israeli Arab politician who served as a member of the Knesset for the Left Camp of Israel and Meretz.

Biography Born in Tayibe during the Mandate era, Haj Yahia studied at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, gaining a BA in sociology and political science. He first entered politics as a member of Mapam. He worked as headmaster of a high school in Tayibe for 23 years, and was a member of the Teachers' Union's central committee.

He left Mapam to found the Left Camp of Israel, he was on the party's list for the 1977 elections. Although he missed out on a seat, he entered the Knesset on 13 February 1981 as a replacement for Uri Avnery. However, he lost his seat in the elections in June that year as the party failed to cross the electoral threshold.

He returned to Mapam following the demise of the Left Camp, and after the 1992 elections he returned to the Knesset on the list of Meretz, an alliance including Mapam. On 4 August he was appointed Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development in Yitzhak Rabin's government, a role he also held under Shimon Peres' brief tenure as Prime Minister after Rabin's assassination. He was re-elected in 1996, but lost his seat in the 1999 elections.