This evening (Monday), the coalition withdrew the “Rabbi Law” of Shas from the agenda due to the entrenchment of the chairman of Otzma Yehudit, Minister of National Security Itamar Ben Gabir, in his opposition. Otzma Yehudit announced their opposition to the law until the party chairman is added to the limited cabinet – and accused the Likud and Shas of colluding with the Arab parties in order to advance the law. The coalition failed to form a majority for the law and Shas officials threaten: “The conduct will dissolve the government. It is impossible to function like this.” The coalition accuses: Ben Gabir runs an election campaign.
Minister Yoav Kish came out once morest Ben Gabir. “Being a member of the cabinet is not a prize, it is a responsibility. Playing during a war with the future of the government is not bravery, it is irresponsibility,” Kish wrote. “In the middle of a war, you risk the integrity of the coalition for political blackmail and ego. That’s the story and that’s the truth.”
Ben Gabir attacked Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu this evening, once morest the background of his demand to join the limited cabinet and his refusal to vote in favor of the “Law of the Rabbis”. According to him, “the absurd reality, in which we are shuffling in Gaza, on the northern border, handcuffed by the IDF, conducting negotiations with promiscuous opening conditions, on the way to a political settlement that is all surrender to terrorism on all fronts, when the Prime Minister conducts himself as a one-man government – he alone accepts the decisions, and alienates his natural partners in the government – it is intolerable.”
“You can’t go on like this.” Deri and Netanyahu Photo: Yonatan Zindel, Flash 90
Otzma Yehudit claimed that they held talks with the Likud in recent days regarding the law and clarified: “Otzma Yehudit conditioned its support for the rabbinic law on the Minister of National Security joining the reduced cabinet. The talks did not mature, and Otzma Yehudit informed the Prime Minister’s Office last night that they would vote once morest the law.”
“In response,” claimed Ben Gabir’s party, “the Likud and Deri agreed with Knesset members from Ra’am and Hadash-Ta’al that they would be absent from the vote.” The deal between the Likud and Deri with supporters of terrorism, just to not include Ben Gabir in the limited cabinet, is a disgrace. We call on the right-wing Likud members not to lend a hand to Dil.”
entrenched in his opposition. Ben Gvir | Photo: Haim Goldberg, Flash 90
The coalition conveyed a message to Otzma Yehudit that following the announcement of the opposition, they are considering turning the vote on the rabbinic law into a vote of no confidence. Otzma Yehudit replied: “There is a very simple way to solve the crisis – bringing Ben Gabir into the limited cabinet that is running the war. As long as this does not happen, we will vote once morest the law in any case, even if you turn the vote into a vote of no confidence. For us, it will be a vote of no confidence In Bibi and Deri’s concept cabinet that contains the shooting from the north and shuffling in the south.
Against the backdrop of Ben Gabir’s demand to enter the war cabinet in exchange for supporting the law, Prime Minister Netanyahu was supposed to meet with him tonight – but canceled the meeting following the law was removed from the agenda. The Shas were outraged and made it clear that they were determined to raise the law at any cost.
Last week we reported that the coalition intends to bring up for the first reading the rabbinical law in a new version that will allow the Derai full freedom of action in religious appointments. In the section of the law, it is established that the Minister of Religions may make appointments to the religious councils as long as it is from the ministry’s budget, so that the authorities will not participate in the funding.
The representative of the Accountant General of the Treasury warned last week in the Constitution Committee that the proposal is “a watered-down version of the Rabbinical Law that allows the Minister of Religious Affairs, in consultation with the Minister of Finance, to appoint any position he wants,” and in response the chair of the committee, Simcha Rothman, was outraged: “What does the Rabbinical Law have to do with the event?”
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