Jewish Nationhood Law Amendment Proposed in Knesset

In its first week, the 26th Knesset has seen a contentious bill introduced that could reignite public debate over the definition of "Who is a Jew." The "Otzma Yehudit" faction, led by MK Limor Son Har Melech, has submitted a proposed amendment to the Law of Return. The bill aims to legally define that only conversions performed according to Halakha (Jewish law) will be recognized for the purposes of immigration and citizenship in Israel.

The proposed legislation, titled "Amendment, Who is a Jew, 5787-2026," is co-signed by all members of the Otzma Yehudit faction and other Knesset members. It seeks to add the phrase "according to Halakha" after "or has converted" in the Law of Return. This would stipulate that only individuals born to a Jewish mother and not belonging to another religion, or those who have undergone a Halakhic conversion, are eligible for aliyah (immigration) and citizenship.

Sources close to MK Son Har Melech stated that efforts are underway to gather more Knesset signatures to build broad parliamentary support for advancing the bill. This initiative arises amid ongoing tensions between the religious and ultra-Orthodox public and the Supreme Court concerning issues of Jewish identity.

The bill's explanatory notes reference a historical discussion in 1958 initiated by then-Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion, who consulted with dozens of Israeli rabbis, intellectuals, philosophers, and public figures to determine the criteria for Jewish identity registration. Interior Ministry directives from January 1960, stemming from that discussion, established that a Jew is someone born to a Jewish mother or converted according to Halakha.

The bill's proponents aim to codify this definition into law, directly addressing a Supreme Court ruling from March 2021 (HCJ 11013/05 Tetro Anna v. Minister of Interior). That ruling recognized non-Orthodox conversions performed in Israel for the purposes of the Law of Return, in the absence of explicit legislative clarity on the definition of conversion. The bill's framers argue that their amendment seeks to overturn this interpretation, preserve traditional continuity, and end the legal ambiguity by establishing a clear statutory definition, recognizing only Halakhic conversions for the Law of Return. The proposal is expected to spark a heated public debate, similar to past discussions on the definition of "Who is a Jew."