Diaspora Minister Amichai Chikli threatens to bring down governing coalition
Chikli was reacting to the demands of the ultra-Orthodox deputies to give their members preference in finding jobs
Diaspora Affairs Minister Amichai Chikli threatened to bring down Israel's governing coalition in an argument with ultra-Orthodox MKs that broke out during a committee meeting in the Knesset on Sunday night.
Chikli was reacting to the ultra-Orthodox MKs' demand that their members be given preference in finding jobs, in the same way as soldiers who have recently completed their military service.
"Don't make me angry," he said. "I brought down the previous government and I can bring down this one too," he threatened. He added that he respected ultra-Orthodox who decided to study in yeshiva (religious education academies) and supported Torah learning, but that their situation could in no way be compared to that of the soldiers who risked their lives for their country.
Chikli, who ran in the previous election for the Likud Party, was a member of Naftali Bennett's Yamina Party in the previous government.
Together with Idit Silman, the Minister of Environmental Protection at the time, he left the government, causing its coalition to fall.