The leaders of Degel Hatorah and Shas, MKs Moshe Gafni and Arye Deri, announced on Tuesday that they would support dissolving the Knesset if no progress was made on the Haredi (ultra-Orthodox) draft bill.
“Today we held a meeting with Prime Minister Netanyahu and conveyed to him, on behalf of the great men of Israel, an unequivocal demand to immediately advance the Basic Law on Torah Study and the Law to Stop the Arrests of Torah Students, by convening the Foreign Affairs and Security Committee and the Knesset Committee this week,” they said in a joint statement.
According to their statement, Netanyahu “made it clear at the meeting that he is committed to approving the laws and will work to advance them quickly.”
Israeli media reported that, during the meeting, the haredi leaders agreed to stop pushing for the approval of the daycare subsidies, which aim to change the eligibility criteria for daycare subsidies, during the current Knesset.
In exchange, Netanyahu agreed to pass the laws defining long-term Torah study as meaningful service to the state, the law barring the arrest of haredi draft dodgers, and kashrut reform.
Additionally, the haredi parties would support the law splitting the role of the Attorney General and the law establishing a political committee to investigate the mistakes that led to the October 7 attacks.
Israeli media also reported that the haredi will support pushing elections for October 20, without dissolving the Knesset first.
This is a developing story.