Coalition Totters as Silman to Vote Against Crucial Bill

By Shmuel Smith

Justice Minister Gideon Sa’ar, head of the New Hope party. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

YERUSHALAYIM – A bill in Knesset deemed crucial to the coalition’s survival appeared to be in serious trouble on Thursday night, as renegade Yamina MK Idit Silman said that she will vote against it, according to Yisrael Hayom.

If true, it means the coalition would likely lack a majority for passage of the measure to renew the application of civil and criminal law to Israelis living in Yehuda and Shomron, leaving them subject to the military administration along with the Palestinians, a situation unprecedented in the history of the state.

Earlier in the week, Gideon Sa’ar, Justice Minister and founder of the right-wing New Hope party, warned that failure to pass it could spell the government’s demise. He did not say, however, what exactly his party would do if the bill went down to defeat. If Sa’ar took it out of the coalition, that would bring down the government and lead to new elections, unless Netanyahu’s Likud could assemble enough MKs to support the return to power of his right-religious bloc.

The report said Silman emphasized her decision was final, even if it means she is formally declared a defector from her party. Coalition leaders have held that punishment in reserve, hoping to persuade her back into the fold, or at least deter her from voting with the opposition to topple the government.

MK Amichai Chikli was declared a defector after quitting the coalition earlier in the year. The designation prevents him from running for Knesset in the next election with another party. Chikli is rumored to be forming his own party, which would be permitted.

Islamist coalition member Ra’am has been against the bill, though its MKs have not said explicitly how they will vote. On Wednesday, the left-wing Meretz party, which in principle opposes it, said it would vote for it, citing coalition agreements that bind the signatories to refrain from advocating any major changes in the status quo regarding the Palestinians.

Even if Ra’am could be enlisted to support the bill in the end, the coalition will still have only 60 votes, one short of the majority necessary for passage, if all opposition MKs vote against it.

In his comments in favor of the bill, Sa’ar told Kan news that failure to pass it “will create chaos for justice matters in Yehuda and Shomron. It will harm the territory’s connection to Israel and Israeli law and will harm some 500,000 Israelis living in [the region].” The Likud-led opposition, flipping the position of Meretz mentioned above, has pledged to vote against the bill, even though in principle, they are for its extension, in order to bring down the coalition.

But the risks are such that Yesha Council leader David Elhayani and its CEO Yigal Dilmoni have backed Sa’ar and urged opposition members to vote for the bill.

The consequences of a failure to renew the law could be dire. Residents of Yehuda and Shomron would effectively be viewed as Israelis living outside the county, and would lose rights granted to Israelis in sovereign Israel, according to The Jerusalem Post.

For example, they would not be eligible for driver’s licenses and car registration, just as if they were Israelis living in a foreign country. If the car is stolen, insurance won’t cover it.

Israeli tax, inheritance and adoption laws would not apply in the region, nor would residents be eligible for state health insurance.

“If this law is not renewed, chaos will descend,” said Dilmoni. “It could drag the area into anarchy,” he said.

However, even if the bill is voted down on Monday, there would still be time to save the situation. It can be brought back for another vote before the current law in Yehuda and Shomron expires at the end of June. On the other hand, if the government falls before a revote can be taken, the chaotic situation that Sa’ar and Dilmoni are concerned about could, in fact, come to pass, plunging Israel into uncharted political and legal territory.

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