Last-Minute Legislative Deals Stall Israel's Torah Study Basic Law and Media Reform Bills

Moshe Gafni, chairman of the Degel HaTorah faction, informed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that he opposes any amendments to the Basic Law on Torah Study. Gafni insists that the law be approved in its original wording as agreed in a tripartite meeting with Netanyahu and Shas leader Aryeh Deri. This stance follows the rejection of a proposal to advance a declarative version of the law, which was discussed in the Knesset committee but opposed after legal counsel Shagit Afik warned that a non-declarative law might require granting Torah students benefits similar to those of IDF soldiers, such as scholarships and land discounts.

Coalition chairman Ofir Katz responded to Gafni's position by stating that Likud might consider submitting objections to the law. If the Basic Law on Torah Study fails to pass, the related law freezing arrests will also not be approved, as it depends on the former's passage. Meanwhile, the Knesset committee approved the "Prohibition of Fraud in Kashrut" bill for second and third readings, which centralizes kosher certification authority under the Chief Rabbinate, local rabbis, and the military rabbinate, eliminating private kosher certification bodies.

Separately, the Communications Minister Shlomo Karai agreed to remove the controversial "Sabbath Desecration" app from the media weakening bill to secure Haredi support. This amendment will send the bill back to committee before returning to the Knesset plenum for a vote. With about eight days remaining before the Knesset dissolves, there is still time to finalize the legislation. The removal of the app provision means content providers must broadcast public-interest sports events for free, which is expected to cause significant financial losses to the Israeli Football Association, sports clubs, and team owners, as they will lose lucrative broadcasting rights revenue. Consumers, however, are unlikely to see a price decrease since most major games are already broadcast free of charge.