Prime Minister Naftali Bennett’s coalition is shaking precariously as the right-wing bloc led by the Likud Party attempts to lure party members away from Yamina. Kan News reported last week that offers of spots on the Likud Party list had been made to MK Nir Orbach and Deputy Minister Abir Kara.
The Arab Parties seem likely to break from the coalition after MK Mazen Ghanaim (United Arab List) broke with the coalition and voted against the Judea and Samaria Law intended to extend emergency regulations to Jewish communities. In retaliation, the Bennett government intends to freeze a plan to transfer hundreds of millions of shekels to the Israeli Arab town of Jisr a-Zarqa, a plan that was important to the Arab Ra’am party.
MK Avraham “Abir,” Kara told Channel 12 News on Friday that if the Judea and Samaria law does not pass in the reading on Monday night, he will begin work to have Israel annex Judea and Samaria.
“Shaked, Orbach, and I will promote many more things. They are trying to create chaos. The Judea and Samaria Regulations Law will be brought up for a vote on Monday, and if they vote it down, we will apply sovereignty in Judea and Samaria. If we fail in passing the Judea and Samaria Law, we will bring an even bigger law that will contain sovereignty in Judea and Samaria,” he stated.
The Judea and Samaria Law was first passed55 years ago, shortly after the Six-Day War, initially as a set of emergency regulations instituted by the government. It has been renewed for periods ranging from 1 to 5 years. The law aimed to address a highly unusual situation in which Israel rules over territory to which it does not apply its laws. This has led to a situation in which there are different legal systems in Israel and Judea, and Samaria. The method used by the law is to apply specific laws on a personal basis to Israelis without applying them universally to the region. Applying Israeli law to this area could be seen as a form of annexation, which the current government is unwilling to initiate. The current law will expire at the end of this month. If it is not extended before this deadline, this may cause many problems in the daily lives of Israelis who live in the Biblical heartland.
