Deri and Gafni warn Netanyahu they will back dissolving the Knesset unless bills advance immediately

Shas chairman Aryeh Deri and Degel HaTorah lawmaker Moshe Gafni met Tuesday with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and then issued a joint statement demanding immediate progress on two key bills, Basic Law: Torah Study and legislation to stop arrests of Torah students.

They said they conveyed the position of senior rabbinic leaders, who want the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee and the Knesset Committee convened this week to move the legislation forward. The ultra-Orthodox leaders added that if they do not see concrete steps in line with their demand, they will support dissolving the Knesset as early as next week.

Deri and Gafni said the request was clear and left no room for further delays, against the backdrop of the continuing crisis over the status of yeshiva students and related legislation. Netanyahu, for his part, said during the meeting that he is committed to passing the laws and is working to advance them.

According to the statement from the ultra-Orthodox party leaders, Netanyahu pledged to speed up the legislative process and bring the needed bills to rapid approval.