Seven MKs from seven parties submitted a proposal on Monday for an urgent parliamentary discussion, following the decision of the Israel Land Authority to deny Lomdei Torah eligibility for discounted apartments, while non-serving members of other sectors remain eligible.

The move comes amid a public uproar that erupted following the decision to bar avreichim from the “Dira B’Hanacha” housing program after Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara and Deputy Attorney General Gil Limon placed extreme pressure on the Israel Land Authority last week to make immediate decisions to revoke housing discounts from bnei yeshivos.

The proposal was the initiative of UTJ MK Meir Porush and was joined by Religious Zionist MK Simcha Rothman, Likud MK Tally Gotliv, Noam chairman Avi Maoz, New Hope MK Michel Buskila, Shas MK Moshe Abutbul, and Otzma Yehudit MK Tzvika Fogel.

The explanatory notes to the request state: “Following the High Court ruling and directives from legal advisers, changes were made to the eligibility criteria for registration for the ‘Apartment at a Discount’ government housing program. As part of these changes, avreichim whose military status is unresolved were barred from registering for the program and participating in the lotteries, due to the ‘link’ created by the legal advisers between housing benefits and military service.”

“However, an examination of the reality on the ground reveals a severe case of double standards, constituting blatant and intentional discrimination specifically against the Chareidi sector. While avreichim are excluded from the program and denied the basic right to a roof over their heads, other sectors of the Israeli population who also do not serve in the IDF have not lost eligibility, and they continue to enjoy full access to the lotteries and the right to an ‘Apartment at a Discount’.”

“This policy creates an illegitimate distinction between citizens based on sectoral and cultural affiliation. Denying housing solutions to the Chareidi public, which is already suffering from a severe and unprecedented housing crisis, under the false pretext of ‘rewarding those who serve’ – while other sectors are exempt from these rules – is a glaring social and economic injustice.”

“In light of the inherent discrimination in the new criteria and the severe harm to young couples in the Chareidi sector, I request to place this issue on the Knesset’s agenda for an urgent discussion, as part of a fast‑track discussion in the Interior Committee.”

“Representatives of the Attorney General’s Office, who were partners in this discriminatory decision, as well as the relevant bodies such as the Israel Land Authority and the Housing Ministry, should be invited to take part in the discussion.”

(YWN Israel Desk—Jerusalem)