Ben-Gvir apologizes for forcing Netanyahu to leave hospital to vote
Minister of National Security Itamar Ben-Gvir apologized on Saturday night for forcing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to leave the hospital early to cast a vote on legislation in the Knesset on Tuesday.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the Knesset for a critical vote on Dec. 31, 2024. Netanyahu, who was recuperating from prostate surgery left Hadassah Ein Kerem Hospital early over the objections of his doctors. Photo by Yoav Dudkevitch/TPS-IL
Ben-Gvir also apologized for forcing Likud MK Boaz Bismuth, who had to interrupt his week of mourning for his mother, to cast his vote.
“I did some soul-searching on Shabbat and realized that I was wrong when I saw the Prime Minister and Boaz in the plenum and we did not offset them,” Ben-Gvir stated. “I apologize to the Prime Minister and my friend Boaz Bismuth. From now on, we will offset the Prime Minister until he fully recovers, God-willing.”
Offsetting refers to the procedural practice in which the absence or inability of one member of parliament to vote is “offset” by an agreement that a member from the opposing side will also abstain from voting. This informal arrangement ensures that a lawmaker’s absence does not disproportionately affect the outcome of a vote. It most commonly applies when a Knesset member is travelling on official business.
Netanyahu was recovering from prostate surgery and left the Hadassah Ein Kerem Hospital against the advice of his doctors. He was accompanied in the Knesset plenum by his personal physician and was seen wearing his hospital bracelet. He was discharged on Thursday. On Friday, Netanyahu’s lawyers requested a two-week delay in his corruption trial, saying the Prime Minister’s discharge instructions stipulated two weeks of rest.
Tuesday’s vote on the “Trapped Profits Law” enable the government to tax “trapped profits,” earnings retained by corporations and multinationals for reinvestment in business growth, infrastructure, and research. It passed by a vote of 59-58.
Failure to pass the bill could have jeopardised the approval of the state budget later or potentially created a 10-billion-shekel deficit ($2.74 billion). By law, the Knesset must pass a budget by March 31 or the government will automatically fall, triggering national elections.
Eight coalition members voted against the bill, including five members of Ben-Gvir’s Otzma Yehudit party and three members of the United Torah Judaism party.
Otzma Yehudit party, led by Ben-Gvir, demands an increased budget for the police, prison service, and firefighting agencies. Several members of United Torah Judaism party demands legislation exempting Haredim, or Orthodox Jewish citizens from military service.
