Israel’s governing coalition may not have a majority for a preliminary vote for a controversial bill aimed at relieving haredi military-age men from a significant financial sanction if they continue evading IDF service. The sanction in question is the removal of subsidies for daycare payments, and the bill, authored by United Torah Judaism MK … Read more
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu directed Coalition Whip MK Ofir Katz (Likud) on Tuesday to remove the controversial haredi (ultra-Orthodox) daycare bill from Wednesday’s Knesset plenum agenda after it became unclear on Tuesday whether or not he would have a majority for the bill to pass. United Torah Judaism, the party pushing the bill, reportedly … Read more
Israel offers free public education from age three through high school. Prior to age three, some Israelis are eligible for state-subsidized daycare for their children, but not all. The criteria for receiving subsidized care are published annually by Israel’s labor ministry prior to each school year. The general idea is that the state provides … Read more
Gov’t secretary Yossi Fuchs made an illegal threat against labor ministry accountant to force him to approve financial transfers to families for daycare subsidies, including to haredi families whose father had not reported for IDF service and were therefore illegible, the attorney-general’s office charged on Monday morning. In a sharply worded letter, Deputy AG … Read more
The Ashkenazic-Haredi party United Torah Judaism announced to Coalition whip MK Ofir Katz (Likud) that they will boycott the Knesset plenum until their “education issues are resolved,” a spokesperson for one of the party’s MKs confirmed on Wednesday. The coalition intends to introduce a number of bills on Thursday for a vote in a … Read more
The attorney general’s office issued a directive on Tuesday that daycare subsidies for families of haredi military-age yeshiva students will continue until the end of November. The directive was a partial acceptance of a request by Labor Minister Yoav Ben-Tzur (Shas), who requested that the subsidies continue until September 2025, or at least until … Read more
Labor Minister Yoav Ben Tzur (Shas) requested in a letter to Deputy Attorney-General Gil Limon on Monday that the decision to cease daycare subsidies for military-age haredi men apply only to the 2025-2026 school year and not to the upcoming school year. Limon’s decision, which he announced on Sunday, was based on the High … Read more
Education Minister Yoav Kisch will present to the Knesset Education Committee on Wednesday new regulations intended to enable salary raises for thousands of teachers in the two major haredi elementary school systems, despite not having reached agreements with the Finance and Justice Ministries on a number of key issues. Kisch announced the new regulations … Read more
Diaspora Affairs Minister Amichai Chikli was interviewed recently on 103FM radio and addressed a number of current issues, including the drafting of the ultra-Orthodox and his support for far-right French presidential candidate Marine Le Pen. “I do not accept the terminology surrounding the draft law,” Chikli began, “It is an injustice to Jewish values. … Read more
Defense Minister Yoav Gallant (Likud) on Sunday gave a security briefing to members of the cabinet, in which he reportedly implored them to approve measures proposed by the Defense Ministry to lengthen IDF mandatory service, increase the number of days of reserve duty per year, and extend the cutoff age for reservists by five … Read more
