Routine renewal of immigration regulation tears at Israeli coalition
A temporary Israeli immigration measure's yearly renewal has put the members of the new government in an uncomfortable position.
The first major test of the ideologically polarized coalition government led by Prime Minister Naftali Bennett and Foreign Minister Yair Lapid emerged in its first week in office.
At issue is the annual renewal of an order than prevents family unifications between Arab citizens of Israel and Palestinian residents of the West Bank or Gaza.
The Knesset vote was scheduled for June 21, but was delayed in view of objections by coalition party Ra’am as well as members of leftist Meretz and Labor. The right-wing opposition parties, although ideologically on board with the order, rebuffed coalition efforts to ensure their support, arguing that their job was to unseat the new government, not help it.
The order, which expires on July 6, exposes inherent difficulties in the makeup of the government that do not bode well for its effectiveness.
