MK Sharren Haskel Quits Government and Seeks to Split from National Right Party

MK Sharren Haskel resigned from her role as Deputy Foreign Minister and submitted a request to split from the National Right faction, a day after opposing the new law freezing arrests of yeshiva students. In a sharply worded letter to party leader and Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar, she accused him of lying to her and the Israeli public, stating, "You lied to me, you lied to the people of Israel." The resignation and split request highlight a deep rift within the party, which recently merged with Likud.

Haskel's split request raises legal challenges, as party split laws require at least one-third of faction members to agree, a threshold she does not meet alone. She argued in her letter to the Knesset Committee that the split clause protects a member's freedom when the faction changes its identity or political affiliation, which she claims happened when the National Right merged with Likud. She emphasized her loyalty to the original principles of the National Right and the New Hope party she joined.

The move aims to secure independent party funding, enhancing her leverage in future coalition negotiations. The National Right faction responded harshly on social media, accusing Haskel of attempting to extort party funding and calling her actions "absurd, audacious, and ungrateful," while also noting her request does not meet legal requirements.

Haskel's resignation was triggered by her principled opposition to the law freezing arrests of yeshiva students, which she believes undermines Israel's security and creates unequal citizen classes. She had been a prominent dissenting voice within the coalition against this legislation. The coming days will determine whether the dispute leads to a court battle or a negotiated settlement between Haskel and Sa'ar.