Just before Knesset disperses, Israeli opposition blocks bipartisan bills
Despite the agreement to disband the Knesset tonight, the opposition has blocked widely supported legislation.
Sometime this evening, the Knesset will vote to dissolve itself and hold a new election. As a result, the coalition and its member parties have launched a blitz of legislation, hoping to pass as much of it as possible in the little time the government has left.
There are, however, several laws the opposition parties are refusing to discuss. One of them is the metro law, which was intended to provide a budget for the construction of a subway in the Tel Aviv metropolitan area in the next decade. The Metro project involves the construction of 109 stations in 24 local councils for an estimated population of 2 million. It is one of the largest infrastructure project ever undertaken in Israel.
Also included in these laws are the long-awaited US visa law that would lead to waiving the visa requirement for Israelis visiting the United States.
Senior members of the coalition led by Prime Minister Naftali Bennett himself have pleaded with members of the opposition to allow them to pass these bills. Bennett tweeted, “Don’t bring down the metro law. Don’t prevent Israel from having such a vital metro system. Israel is a modern country, but it lacks a subway system like they have in New York, Paris or London. That is why we are forced to suffer through endless traffic jams.”
