Israel’s Bennett Pledges Aggressive Approach to Secure Bill to Block Release of Murderers
by Joshua Levitt
Naftali Bennett, Israel’s Economy Minister and head of the Bayit Yehudi – Jewish Home – Party, on Tuesday pledged to secure a bill that would block the release of terrorists, despite objections from the leaders of other parties, including partners in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s coalition government.
On Facebook, Bennett said, “Shame on Yesh Atid” because it “just stopped the advancement of the bill to prevent the release of terrorists.”
Yesh Atid – There is a Future – is a party led by Israeli Finance Minister Yair Lapid and Yaakov Peri, Israel’s Minister for Science, Technology and Space.
“The day after we presented a bill to prevent murderers from being released with parole, which received government support, Yesh Atid, through Minister Yaakov Peri, filed an appeal against the law,” Bennett said. “Yes, you heard right !”
“This means the delay of the law until Yesh Atid changes their minds or until the bill is brought back to the government for a re-vote,” he said. “This means delaying the voting of the bill on the Knesset floor, which was scheduled for Wednesday.”
“I state here very clearly: This bill will pass. Period,” he said. “We will use all the tools at our disposal, including blocking Yesh Atid bills, until we pass our bill.”
“Every day that this law is delayed can endanger human lives. That is the simple truth,” Bennett said. “I do not and will not tolerate nor have patience for political games at the expense of essential laws for the security of Israeli citizens.”