Shaked at Jerusalem press conference
Shaked at Jerusalem press conferenceFlash 90

Justice Minister and chairwoman of the New Right party Ayelet Shaked announced on Friday that her party will demand that the budget for Magen David Adom (MDA) emergency service stations in Judea and Samaria be included in the budget base in coalition negotiations.

"Putting the residents of Judea and Samaria in danger due to a Ministry of Finance failure is out of the question," Shaked told Samaria Regional Council head Yossi Dagan. "The discrimination against the residents of Judea and Samaria will end."

Dagan spoke with Shaked on Thursday, informing her of the budget problem affecting MDA stations in the regional councils in Judea and Samaria. The budget shortfall threatens the provision of emergency medical services in Judea and Samaria every year, placing thousands of its residents at risk.

The budget for MDA stations for Israeli towns of the Gaza border area is included in the budget base every year but the situation in Judea and Samaria is different despite the fact that it is a high-conflict area. Each year, the heads of the regional councils are forced to run between the Prime Minister's Office, the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Health in order to obtain the necessary budget.

Dagan has been working ceaselessly to stop the closure of MDA stations in Judea and Samaria and successfully reached an agreement for the continuation of emergency services. However, he is demanding that MDA services be included in the base budget and not be granted as a "favor" to Judea and Samaria residents.