Rabbi Yitzhak Yosef, former Sephardic Chief Rabbi, has instructed former Minister Ariel Atias, the head of his party's negotiation team, to inform Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that the conditions set by Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee Chairman MK Yuli Edelstein regarding the Draft Law effectively signify "the end of the government's term."
Rabbi Yosef also directed that open communication be maintained with all parties in the Knesset to enable potential cooperation after the next elections.
"The primary mission in the Knesset is to strengthen and safeguard Torah scholars, without whom we have no right to exist. Therefore, efforts must be made with anyone willing to assist in this matter, regardless of political affiliation or ideological stream," a statement read.
Sources in the haredi parties told Kan Reshet Bet that the meeting called Thursday by the Prime Minister could prove decisive in the ongoing crisis over the Draft Law. Attendees are expected to include MK Edelstein, former Minister Atias, and Cabinet Secretary Yossi Fuchs.
This meeting follows the refusal of leading Lithuanian-haredi rabbis, Rabbi Dov Landa and Rabbi Moshe Hillel Hirsch, to meet with Netanyahu on the matter, stating there was “no point in further discussions.”
Previously, Netanyahu met with Edelstein amid Edelstein's insistence on including sweeping sanctions in the law — even in cases where draft targets are nearly met.
A proposed framework involved a tiered system where meeting 90% of the draft targets would result in a 20% reduction in yeshiva funding, and meeting 80% would trigger a 40% cut. However, Edelstein insisted that any achievement below 95% would lead to the total revocation of funding.
The sanctions proposed by Edelstein encompass a wide range of restrictions: revoking tax credits for working women, removing housing subsidies, revoking driver’s licenses, restricting travel abroad, canceling property tax reductions, ending discounted housing programs, and imposing a tax on first-time home purchases.
Additional proposed penalties include denying subsidies for academic studies and daycare subsidies, removal of public transport discounts, and even maintaining a constant risk of arrest, as documented in a list shown to haredi representatives.