The political crisis over legislation dealing with ultra-Orthodox yeshiva students intensified on Tuesday after Shas leader Aryeh Deri and United Torah Judaism lawmaker Moshe Gafni said they would back dissolving the Knesset unless concrete steps were taken to advance two bills, one on Torah study as a basic law and another meant to halt arrests of yeshiva students. After meeting Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, they said he had committed to push the legislation forward, and that deal came shortly after a planned meeting of coalition leaders for today was canceled.
The announcement triggered sharp criticism from the opposition and even from within Likud. Yair Golan, head of The Democrats, accused Netanyahu of “selling Israel to the ultra-Orthodox,” saying the coalition was “spitting in the face” of working and serving Israelis. He vowed to fight any law that harms Israel and to repeal such measures in the next government.
Blue and White leader Benny Gantz said that in the “broad Zionist government” he expects after the election, no party will hold the state hostage. He said the ultra-Orthodox parties will not be able to extort budgets for government survival, and the Arab parties will not be able to block security decisions. Yisrael Beiteinu lawmaker Oded Forer said soldiers were “like ducks in a shooting range” in Lebanon while Netanyahu promised Deri and Gafni a law to stop arrests of draft evaders, and argued that Netanyahu had lost touch with reality and his legitimacy to lead.
Former IDF chief and MK Gadi Eisenkot called it a “sale of national interests” and said the laws would not pass, a state commission of inquiry would be established, and society would begin rebuilding. Likud MK Dan Illouz also criticized the move, saying extra days in power were not worth insulting serving Israelis or advancing the Torah study law. Meanwhile, ultra-Orthodox parties said they need real progress in committee in the coming days, even though only about 16 legislative days remain in the current session, so they are currently demanding the formal opening of the process rather than full passage.
