August 17

👉🏽 Should the government refuse to abide by a putative court decision striking down a basic law amendment, Histadrut Labor Federation chair Arnon Bar-David said the Histadrut would prevent a constitutional crisis. Prime Minister Netanyahu continues to refuse to say whether the Coalition would abide by such a court ruling; members of his coalition have said they would not.

👉🏽 Following up on the National Park gender segregation pilot, Israel Hayom reports that United Torah Judaism’s Moshe Gafni has now proposed a bill legislating separate hours in all nature reserves for at least 15% of the park hours. The bill was originally proposed in January; Gafni reportedly tabled it so the pilot could be introduced. In January, according to Walla, Likud had vowed to maintain the status quo on all religion and state matters, including at nature reserves. The courts have in the past ruled that separate but equal is not legal.

👉🏽 Reuters reports that 80% of new Israeli startups are incorporating in Delaware, rather than Israel. Last year, only 20% incorporated outside of Israel.

👉🏽 Times of Israel reporting that Likud MK Ofir Katz promised that the Coalition would pass the Haredi exemption bill, and then continue with the rest of the judicial overhaul.

👉🏽 Media reporting that the IDF penalized two naval officers who declined to do their volunteer service because of the judicial coup.

👉🏽 National Unity MK Matan Kahans joined the chorus calling for the Opposition parties to join the Coalition in a unity government; his spin has PM Netanyahu serving another two years, before new elections.

👉🏽 Israel’s three biggest television channels claim the government’s next anti-democratic move is political control of the media. Similar to the attempted restructuring of the judicial committee to weigh it in favor of the Coalition, the new communication committee proposed by Likud Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi has nine members: Two appointed by Karhi, and the rest by the Communications, Education and Justice ministries - all Coalition. Reshet 13, Keshet 12, and national broadcaster KAN stated that Karhi’s plan would heavily favor the right wing Channel 14.

👉🏽 With headline, “Police chief and Ben Gvir spar over who cops should obey in constitutional crisis,” Times of Israel reporting that should Israel undergo a constitutional crisis, Police Commissioner Kobi Shabtai stated that police would unequivocally follow the law, apparently meaning the court decision. Jewish Power National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir retorted, “Politicians are elected and the policy they set must guide us all” (apparently meaning the police must follow the Knesset).

👉🏽 Pushing back on the haredi yeshiva exemption, Brothers in Arms, the NGO representing reservists, filed a petition to draft yeshiva students immediately, arguing the previous exemption expired in June and was discriminatory, offering special treatment to just one demographic. (JPost and other media)

👉🏽 Right after Hitorerut last week launched a free minibus service for Jerusalem to Tel Aviv travel on shabbat with hundreds on the waitlist, haredi Jerusalem deputy mayor Aryeh King vowed to stop it.

👉🏽 Maariv reports that military preparedness remains a concern, given the combination of expected upcoming court rulings, a putative constitutional crisis, continued legislation without consensus, and the yeshiva exemption bill.

Updates by email at IsraelMachar.com

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