In a dramatic and chaotic session marked by Iranian missile fire and political maneuvering, Israel’s coalition pushed through hundreds of millions of shekels for yeshivos and chareidi institutions during overnight Knesset budget votes.

The voting process itself was delayed by two hours after missile launches from Iran interrupted proceedings. Votes ultimately began at 9:00 a.m. and are expected to continue through the night, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu present in the Knesset.

Earlier in the evening, lawmakers approved key components of the 2026 budget, including a deficit ceiling of 4.9%. Government spending is set to increase by approximately 32 billion shekels, with total expenditure growth reaching 8.8% — an overall addition of about 60 billion shekels to the state budget, which now totals 699 billion shekels, the largest in Israel’s history.

But the most dramatic moment came shortly before the final vote.

In a highly unusual move, the coalition introduced last-minute reservations — typically used by the opposition — to allocate funding to chareidi institutions. The funds, drawn from coalition allocations previously frozen by the Attorney General due to draft-related concerns, were advanced through a procedural workaround.

The plan had reportedly been developed in secrecy for over a week, specifically to catch the opposition off guard.

The strategy worked.

During the initial votes, opposition lawmakers mistakenly voted together with the coalition, believing the measures were opposition-backed objections. Only after several votes did they realize the error and revert to opposing the allocations — but by then, hundreds of millions had already been approved.

Opposition leader Yair Lapid blasted the move, saying: “There has never been anything like this in the history of the Knesset. At this moment, the coalition has added hundreds of millions of shekels to the chareidi parties beyond the framework of the budget! This is a group of pathetic thieves, disconnected from the public, looting Israeli citizens while they are in shelters.”

Former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett also sharply criticized the move, stating: “A nighttime looting maneuver. Right now, literally like thieves in the night, the government is carrying out a grab and adding hundreds of millions of shekels to chareidi education that encourages draft evasion… At this very moment, while IDF soldiers are fighting in the Litani, government ministers are looting us all.”

Coalition officials insisted the funds were not new allocations, but rather approval to utilize existing coalition money through an alternative legal route.

Minister Ze’ev Elkin mocked the opposition’s confusion, saying lawmakers failed to check what they were voting on, resulting in broad support — nearly 100 MKs — for increasing yeshiva funding.

Earlier, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich defended the budget, highlighting strong economic indicators despite the ongoing war.

“You promised the shekel would weaken, but it is stronger than ever… Israel’s macroeconomic data is astonishing the world and beating forecasts,” he said, adding that the budget includes tens of billions aimed at strengthening Israel’s security and geopolitical standing.

Lapid, in closing remarks, delivered a scathing attack: “You think the public is stupid and doesn’t understand what you are putting here today… This is not a budget, it’s a robbery. The biggest theft in the history of the state… The Israeli public is not stupid.”

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)