Following intense tensions within the coalition and firm pressure from the chareidi parties, coalition leaders decided late Monday night that the arrest freeze bill championed by Shas chairman Aryeh Deri will be the next piece of legislation brought before the Knesset plenum.

The decision came after members of the Religious Zionism party sought to give priority to other coalition bills. However, the chareidi factions stood their ground, insisting that the arrest freeze bill be brought to a vote first and pressing coalition leaders to make an immediate decision.

Senior officials in the chareidi parties made their position unmistakably clear.

“The arrest freeze bill must be the next bill brought before the Knesset plenum,” senior officials in the chareidi factions said. “Smotrich is playing with fire and jeopardizing Struk’s bill and the judicial advisory bill that Rothman has worked on for many months. Without the arrest freeze bill, the other bills will not pass.”

The message from Shas and United Torah Judaism was unequivocal: Unless the arrest freeze bill was brought up first, the chareidi parties would not support the coalition’s other major legislative initiatives. The standoff reached its peak when Religious Zionism attempted to move other bills to the top of the agenda but encountered unwavering opposition from the chareidi factions.

Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee Chairman MK Boaz Bismuth presented the legislation before the Knesset, explaining its purpose.

“The bill seeks to halt the terrible trend of arresting Torah scholars during the election period and shortly thereafter, in the hope that the next government will succeed in passing a draft law,” Bismuth said.

The legislation, which was approved by the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee by a narrow 8-7 vote, would suspend arrest proceedings for 90 days. The chareidi parties view the measure as a critical step toward preventing the arrest of bnei yeshivah in the coming months until a new government is formed and comprehensive legislation regulating the status of lomdei Torah can be enacted.

The coalition’s decision to prioritize the arrest freeze bill follows another major victory for the chareidi parties just hours earlier, when the Knesset approved the Basic Law: Torah Study in its second and third readings.

The landmark legislation passed by a vote of 63-52. Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu was absent from the vote.

Following its passage, Degel HaTorah chairman MK Moshe Gafni declared, “Today, a historic step was taken in the State of Israel. From this point on, the State of Israel has also established, in a Basic Law, that Torah study is a foundational value in the heritage of the Jewish people and in the State of Israel.”

Shas chairman Aryeh Deri also celebrated the achievement, saying, “This is a victory for the Torah world and a clear response to the dismissed attorney general and to everyone who tried to persecute and humiliate the yeshiva students. You will not succeed in breaking the Jewish spirit! The holy Torah will prevail!”

Leaders of the chareidi parties believe that together, the Basic Law: Torah Study and the arrest freeze bill will provide vital protection for bnei Torah over the coming months until a new government is established.

The coalition’s legislative marathon began Monday and is expected to continue uninterrupted through Friday morning as lawmakers race to pass a series of major bills before the Knesset adjourns.

{Matzav.com}