Shas Party Refuses to Back Communications Law Without Religious Amendments

The Shas party announced it will not support the current version of the communications law, stating that the amendments it requested, based on directives from its rabbis, were not included in the final draft. The party emphasized that its demands aimed to prevent harm to religious values, and since these were not met, Shas will vote against the bill. However, Shas called on Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi to split the law and bring to a separate vote the sections concerning regulatory relief for new channels, including Channel 14. Shas clarified that it would support the bill if such a split occurs and expressed hope that the proposal to divide the law would be presented soon.

Earlier, the United Torah Judaism faction also declared it would not support the law. Minister Shlomo Karhi met in the Knesset with Degel HaTorah chairman Moshe Gafni in an effort to reach an agreement.