The bill to freeze arrests of yeshiva students who evade military service advanced to the Knesset plenum for a final vote Tuesday morning, after the Basic Law: Torah Study passed overnight. Former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett condemned the bill as a 'deliberate and conscious harm to the IDF' and vowed to repeal all 'chaos laws'.
Former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett condemned the arrest freeze bill for Haredi draft evaders as a 'deliberate and conscious harm to the IDF' early Tuesday, after the legislation advanced to the Knesset plenum for a final vote. The bill's progression follows the overnight passage of the Basic Law: Torah Study, which enshrined the status of Torah study in Israel's Basic Laws. As of 04:02 Jerusalem, the final plenum vote is expected later in the morning, with voting scheduled for 9:00 AM.
The Zioneer reported in a series of bulletins at 02:00 Jerusalem that the Knesset plenum was first set to begin the final vote on the bill, then that it had officially begun its deliberations, and finally that the bill had reached the decisive plenum stage, according to Knesset Foreign Affairs and Security Committee chair MK Boaz Bismut. The initial reports from N12 journalist Dafna Liel were confirmed by Bismut's statement, corroborating the sequence. The Basic Law: Torah Study passed in second and third readings overnight, as The Zioneer reported on Monday night at 21:58 Jerusalem, with two Likud MKs, Yuli Edelstein and Dan Illouz, voting against it.
The legislation is part of a last-minute coalition push before the Knesset's dispersal, as The Zioneer reported earlier this week. The coalition had agreed to approve both the Basic Law and the arrest freeze before the recess. The arrest freeze bill has drawn opposition from the IDF Chief of Staff, who warned it would strip the military of detention authority, and from opposition figures including Bennett, who vowed to repeal all 'chaos laws' if his party returns to power.
The final vote is scheduled for 9:00 AM Tuesday, but the outcome remains uncertain. A majority of the coalition is expected to support the bill, though Likud rebels have already broken ranks on the Basic Law vote. It is not yet clear whether the bill will pass with the required simple majority or if further opposition defections occur.
3 developments
- StrongBill freezing arrests of yeshiva students approved for final Knesset readings
- DevelopingCoalition leaders agree: Basic Law Torah Study and freeze on draft-dodger arrests to pass before Knesset disperses
- StrongNetanyahu convenes coalition heads Tuesday to secure majority for draft-evader arrest freeze
- StrongKnesset committee begins final votes on Charedi detention freeze bill
Source and signal
- Internal intake