MK Elazar Stern Resigns, Citing Knesset's Diminished Status Under Speaker Ohana

Member of Knesset Elazar Stern, who recently left the Yesh Atid party to join Gadi Eisenkot's "Yashar!" party, submitted his resignation from the Knesset on Sunday. Stern met with Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana before submitting his resignation, and alongside his formal letter, he submitted a sharp personal letter criticizing Ohana's conduct.

In his letter, Stern asserted that under Ohana's speakership, the Knesset's standing has been severely damaged. He accused Ohana of using his position to undermine the separation of powers, effectively turning the Knesset into a tool of the government with little ability to oversee its work. "You have turned the Knesset into a trampled authority at the hands of the government," Stern wrote.

Stern further alleged that Ohana used his role to "disgrace the justice system instead of respecting it," thereby eroding public trust in state institutions. He also claimed that Ohana transformed the Speaker's chair into a platform for "incitement, division, and animosity, rather than unity and stateliness," exacerbating societal rifts even during wartime.

This resignation follows Stern's recent declaration of intent to run for Knesset Speaker himself, should the "Yashar!" party form the next government. Speaker Ohana responded forcefully to Stern's criticisms, dismissing his letter as a "preposterous manifesto" by a "party-hopping opportunist" whose sole aim is media attention for his election campaign. Ohana suggested Stern's letter deserved the same fate as alleged complaints of sexual harassment he received in a previous role, implying it should be discarded.