Israeli Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu held a key meeting with Shas leader Aryeh Deri and MK Yuli Edelstein, chairman of the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, in a bid to ease tensions over the contentious issue of the proposed chareidi draft legislation.
Individuals familiar with what transpired in the meeting said that Edelstein pushed for a policy that would see at least fifty percent of eligible chareidi men drafted into the IDF. Deri, however, strongly objected to this suggestion and reportedly dismissed the numbers put forward during the discussion.
Despite the stark disagreement, the Prime Minister’s Office later released a statement describing the talks as having made “progress,” and indicated that negotiations would continue in hopes of resolving the differences between the parties.
Earlier in the day, coalition members pulled all legislative items from the Knesset’s agenda after chareidi lawmakers launched a voting boycott. Their demand: that the draft bill move forward precisely according to prior coalition understandings.
Channel 12 News reported that Netanyahu was furious about the boycott and cautioned that if the impasse continues, it could trigger new elections. At the same time, sources said that members of Agudas Yisroel informed Netanyahu that any deal he works out with Deri would not be seen as binding on their faction.
Commentators say the growing divide between Netanyahu and the chareidi blocs could endanger the future of the coalition and may even bring about another round of elections.
{Matzav.com Israel}