The Knesset plenum began voting Wednesday night on the first reading of the Basic Law: Torah Study, with Prime Minister Netanyahu present to support the bill. MKs Yuli Edelstein (National Unity), Orit Haskel (National Unity), and Elazar Illouz (Likud) voted against the legislation, according to N12.
The Knesset plenum is voting Wednesday night on the first reading of the Basic Law: Torah Study, a coalition bill that would enshrine Torah study as a constitutional-level value and codify the existing exemptions from military service for full-time yeshiva students. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who skipped the preliminary vote earlier, arrived to cast his vote in favor, signaling the coalition's determination to pass the bill despite internal dissent.
According to N12 correspondent Daphna Liel, MKs Yuli Edelstein (National Unity), Orit Haskel (National Unity), and Elazar Illouz (Likud) voted against the legislation. Two of the three dissenters — Edelstein and Haskel — are members of the National Unity party, while Illouz is a member of Netanyahu's own Likud faction. The vote is being held after a filibuster by MK Yitzhak Pindros (United Torah Judaism) earlier Wednesday evening, as The Zioneer reported.
The bill cleared the Knesset Committee earlier this week, moving toward a plenum vote before the Knesset recess. Religious Zionist party was reported by N12 on Tuesday to be expected to back the measure. The vote count is ongoing, and final passage of the first reading is expected.
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