Full coverage· Politics· Updated 17:20

Israel Approves $700 Million Budget Cuts for Defense Needs

The Israeli government has approved a sweeping 4.9% budget cut across civilian ministries, totaling NIS 2.6 billion, to fund urgent and classified defense procurement for the Ministry of Defense. The decision, made on Sunday, October 18, 2026, comes just nine days before the national elections scheduled for October 27, drawing legal scrutiny over its timing during an election period.

19 newsrooms · 4 languages · since 17 Oct, 22:37

Plus

Israel Approves $700 Million Budget Cuts for Defense Needs — Illustration by baba

Photos · 6

Photos the newsrooms posted about this story, and the ones the IDF and Magen David Adom released.

Official photos are free. 6 more with Plus.

What happened

01The Israeli government approved a NIS 2.6 billion budget cut across civilian ministries to fund urgent, classified defense procurement.
02The 4.9% reduction was approved on Sunday, October 18, 2026, just nine days before the national elections.
03The Ministry of Transportation faces the largest reduction, losing NIS 423 million from its budget.
04The Ministry of Education will lose up to NIS 354 million, while requests for exemptions by the Welfare and Health ministries were denied.
05Coalition funds were completely spared from the cuts, which target the ministries' flexible development and procurement budgets.
06This decision follows a recent NIS 1.03 billion allocation for Apache helicopters, bringing weekly defense increases to over NIS 3.6 billion.
07Security officials warned that delaying the classified procurement would compromise necessary national security responses.
08The Knesset Finance Committee previously approved the cross-the-board cut with bipartisan support from both the coalition and the opposition.

The cuts will heavily impact public services, with the Ministry of Transportation losing NIS 423 million, the Ministry of Education losing up to NIS 354 million, the Ministry of National Security losing around NIS 224 million, the Ministry of Welfare losing NIS 138 million, and the Ministry of Health losing up to NIS 150 million. Requests for exemptions from the Welfare and Health ministries were denied. Coalition funds were explicitly excluded from the reductions, which instead target development and procurement budgets.

This measure follows a prior allocation of NIS 1.03 billion for the purchase of 12 Apache combat helicopters, which was funded by cutting the multi-year development budget for the Arab sector. Together, these decisions increase defense spending by over NIS 3.6 billion in a single week. Security officials insisted the classified purchases are an urgent necessity that cannot be delayed, warning that any postponement could compromise national security responses.

While Ministry of Finance officials warned that massive defense increases come at the expense of citizens, some sources described the cuts as technical, suggesting alternative funding sources might be found by the end of the year to offset the reductions. The Knesset Finance Committee previously approved the cross-the-board cut with agreement from both the coalition and the opposition.

Summarized by baba from the reports of 14 newsrooms. Updated 12:41