Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara moved Monday to immediately block the transfer of hundreds of millions of shekels that had been allocated for Torah mosdos and programs assisting at-risk chareidi youth, despite those funds having been approved overnight as part of the 2026 state budget.

According to Baharav-Miara, the coalition’s overnight actions were unlawful, claiming they were intended to sidestep rulings of the Supreme Court regarding the issue of military conscription.

During the night, chareidi factions succeeded in advancing a series of amendments to the budget legislation, structured to ensure that coalition funds designated for the chareidi tzibbur would be funneled directly into relevant programs within the Ministry of Education. This was done in order to avoid the funds remaining in a general reserve that would require further legal authorization and oversight by the Finance Committee.

In a sharply worded letter, the Attorney General asserted that the process used to pass these amendments lacked validity. “Approving these reservations without legal and professional opinions constitutes an attempt to override steps taken to implement the court’s ruling on conscription, as well as rulings concerning benefits granted to draft evaders,” she wrote.

She further directed senior officials in government ministries not to move forward with implementing the transfers. In her explanation, she pointed to Directive 1.1801, which requires a full legal review of any political agreements with budgetary ramifications—a requirement she said was not fulfilled in this case.

Opposition leader Yair Lapid responded to the development, stating: “The overnight maneuver by the haredi parties has been invalidated-the money has been stopped. Following Yesh Atid’s appeal to the Attorney General, she ordered the halt of all the illegal funds approved overnight and is demanding further action against draft evaders. As I promised, you can rely on us. The celebrations of Aryeh Deri, Benjamin Netanyahu, and Bezalel Smotrich were premature. We will continue to fight for you. This money will not pass.”

MK Moshe Gafni, chairman of Degel HaTorah, strongly pushed back against the Attorney General’s decision, maintaining that the budget was passed properly and in accordance with the law. “The budget was lawfully approved last night with an unprecedented majority. Gali Baharav-Miara has no authority to intervene-this is criminal by any standard, and her hostility toward the haredi public is evident to all. Of the ten measures of hatred that descended upon the world, she took nine.”

{Matzav.com}