Israel: Bill advances to dissolve Knesset, planned for Wednesday
The bill, approved on first reading, will come up for a vote in two more readings before it becomes law
A bill to dissolve Israel’s parliament (Knesset) received preliminary approval on Monday night, with the bill set to be finalized by Wednesday at midnight.
The proposed legislation was approved in its first reading in the plenum, after more than 20 drafts since Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett announced last week that Israel would go to elections.
Before becoming law, the bill will come up for a vote in two more readings.
The upcoming elections will be the fifth held in three years, with October 25 and November 1 proposed as possible dates.
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Israel's House Committee in the afternoon pushed back to the evening a meeting to discuss the legislation.
Despite nearly a dozen drafts submitted on Wednesday alone, Nir Orbach, a defector of Bennett's Yamina party and chairman of the committee, reportedly delayed the vote to give the opposition a chance to form a coalition.
This came as former prime minister and opposition leader Benjamin Netanyahu is trying to form a government with the current make-up of the Knesset.
A bill to prevent Netanyahu, as a politician under indictment, from leading a future government was shelved. Other bills placed on hold include a bill for a subway built in Tel Aviv, while another to compensate Israelis affected by the omicron variant of Covid will move forward.
Once the parliament is dissolved, Foreign Minister and Alternate Prime Minister Yair Lapid will take the mantle from Bennett as interim prime minister.