The Blue and White party hinted Wednesday that it may take action against Knesset Speaker Yuli Edelstein (Likud) if he does not bring Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s immunity request to the Knesset for a vote before the March 2nd election.
MK Avi Nissenkorn (Blue and White), who chairs the Knesset’s Arrangement’s Committee, told Galei Tzahal radio that his party “expects a decision by the end of the week from Knesset Speaker Yuli Edelstein which will fit with the majority opinion.”
Fellow Blue and White MK Tzvi Hauser urged Edelstein on Wednesday to bring the immunity request to the current Knesset in an interview with Reshet Bet.
“The question of Netanyahu’s immunity request needs to be brought to a hearing in the current Knesset, the Knesset in which the request was made. The moment a request for immunity is made, the law requires an immediate hearing on it, and that is what we intend to do.”
Some party officials have recently threatened to take action against Edelstein if he does not send the immunity request to the current Knesset – with some threatening to remove Edelstein as Knesset Speaker.
Under Israeli law, a request for parliamentary immunity must be brought before the Knesset’s House Committee, which is required to hold hearings on the matter and vote on the request.
If the request wins committee backing, it is brought before the full Knesset plenum for a vote.
Since no new government was formed in either the 21st or 22nd Knessets, however, no House Committee has been formed since the 20th Knesset, leaving Netanyahu’s request for parliamentary immunity in limbo – freezing the legal proceedings against him until a new House Committee is formed to vote on the request.
While the center-left Blue and White party has demanded the Knesset vote to form a House Committee for the outgoing Knesset, during a caretaker government, any Knesset action can be vetoed by the Speaker.