Opposition blocks transfer of NIS 392 million in coalition funds for Haredi schools, settlements

Ariela Karmel is a political correspondent at The Times of Israel. She previously reported for Calcalist and Haaretz. She holds an MA in Middle Eastern and African History from Tel Aviv University and a BA in Political Science from the University of British Columbia.

Opposition lawmakers on Wednesday blocked the transfer of an approximately NIS 392 million ($116 million) budget earmarked primarily for Haredi education and the Settlements Ministry, preventing a vote after an 11-hour Knesset Finance Committee marathon session ran past the allotted time allowed for parliamentary meetings during a recess.

The transfers failed to secure approval due to a filibuster by opposition lawmakers, who deliberately prolonged the debate. The gambit was aided by internal disagreements between Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich — whose Religious Zionism party draws much of its support from the settlement movement — and ultra-Orthodox parties over the distribution of coalition funds between their respective constituencies.

The funding is now highly unlikely to be approved before the October 27 elections, since opposition consent would now be required for further Knesset consideration of the matter.

The government sought to approve the transfers in the wake of the Knesset's dissolution nearly two weeks ago, prompting opposition parties to accuse it of trying to further shore up the ruling coalition ahead of the election by doling out public funds to political allies.

The funding included more than NIS 284 million ($94 million) earmarked for Haredi education and related programs through the Education Ministry, including NIS 13.5 million ($4.5 million) to build Haredi schools. According to Hebrew media reports, the budget also earmarked NIS 26 million ($8.6 million) to prevent yeshiva students from dropping out and about NIS 18.5 million ($6.1 million) for Torah educational institutions.

It also included around NIS 83 million ($24.5 million) for the Settlements Ministry, of which NIS 67.5 million ($22.4 million) was intended for programs serving so-called "hilltop youth," referring to young settler radicals known for setting up illegal outposts and taking part in regular attacks on Palestinians in the West Bank.

That funding would have come on top of NIS 1.3 billion ($431 million) that the government recently announced had been allocated by the security cabinet in June to fund the establishment of dozens of new West Bank settlements approved by Israel over the last three and a half years.

The Finance Committee has previously sought to divert funds to Haredi institutions despite legal and procedural objections. In March, it approved nearly NIS 100 million ($33 million) for Haredi educational institutions as part of a broader NIS 1 billion ($331 million) transfer that had been frozen by the High Court of Justice in December, after opposition lawmakers argued the government was funding schools that do not teach the core curriculum required by law.

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