Prime Minister Naftali Bennett's government will face a serious challenge on Thursday, when the state must respond to the Supreme Court about the fate of the unauthorized outpost in Homesh.
Bennett hinted that Homesh would not be evacuated.
“There is a law that determines that building in communities that were part of the disengagement is illegal,” he said at a Jerusalem Day celebration at the Midreshet Lindenbaum seminary in Jerusalem’s Arnona neighborhood. “For now, the law won’t be changed. For a decade, Homesh has been evacuated over and over again. We need to be smart. We are in the midst of a terrorist wave, so we need to act intelligently.”
At issue is the future of a small, illegally built modular yeshiva that for more than 15 years has been on the site of the former Homesh settlement. The left-wing Israeli NGO Yesh Din turned to the court over Homesh in 2019, and the state is expected to respond to its petition.
The defense establishment would decide when and if Homesh will be evacuated, regardless of the coalition, Alternate Prime Minister Yair Lapid told Channel 13 on Wednesday.
But the decision is in the hands of Defense Minister Benny Gantz, who spoke ambiguously about Homesh this week. Interior Minister Ayelet Shaked said she would do everything possible to prevent the removal of Homesh. She negotiated with Gantz on Wednesday.
On the Right, figures in the government and sources close to wavering Yamina MK Nir Orbach warned that if Homesh is evacuated, the coalition would disintegrate. On the Left, Environmental Protection Minister Tamar Zandberg (Meretz) said the outpost must go.
The Knesset voted down a bill proposed by Likud MK Yuli Edelstein that would have canceled the Disengagement Law, which bars resettlement of Homesh.
New Hope MK Sharren Haskel rebelled against the coalition on Wednesday by voting against a bill sponsored by Ra’am (United Arab List).
Blue and White MK Michael Biton announced on Wednesday at a meeting of the Knesset Economy Committee he chairs that he would no longer vote with the coalition, except for no-confidence votes.
Biton protested a public transport reform which he said was planned secretly behind his back by Transportation Minister Merav Michaeli.
Cabinet secretary Shalom Shlomo tried to mediate between Biton and Michaeli, who has been rejecting his demands for months, but Biton canceled the meeting.
Biton is the previous mayor of Yeruham, a development town. His demands involve helping people who live in communities in the periphery.
“I won’t let the weakest sectors of the population be harmed,” Biton said.
I won't let the weakest sectors of the population be harmed
MK Michael Biton
Agriculture Minister Oded Forer (Israel Beytenu) criticized Biton and accused him of populism.
However, Biton downplayed his own protest in radio interviews. He told KAN News he saw himself as a “loyal soldier of the coalition” and would not topple the government.
There was also a fight in the opposition on Wednesday over a bill against plastic bags that was sponsored by Likud MK Gila Gamliel, a former environmental protection minister.
Shas leader Arye Deri said the bill would hurt the poor. Opposition leader Benjamin Netanyahu yelled at Gamliel to scrap it, but she refused, and the bill passed.Tovah Lazaroff contributed to this report.
Tovah Lazaroff contributed to this report.