Just last month, ultra-Orthodox Yahadut HaTorah Chairman Yaakov Litzman resigned from the government and gave up his post as housing minister. The move came in protest of the decision to place the country under closure during the fall holiday season. On Oct. 12, he returned to the government and his old Cabinet position, with the new title of deputy housing minister. It was part of a larger deal that the ultra-Orthodox parties made with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Deputy Minister of Housing Itzik Cohen from ultra-Orthodox Shas was promoted to the position of minister in the Finance Ministry and minister of Housing, while Litzman returned to the Housing Ministry as deputy.
If anything, this reshuffling of Cabinet seats is evidence of a robust alliance between Netanyahu and the ultra-Orthodox parties. Like any alliance, it has seen its own set of challenges. When Netanyahu formed his third coalition, back in 2013, he had to contend with the “covenant of brothers” forged between Yesh Atid Chairman Yair Lapid and Yamina leader Naftali Bennett. The two men agreed that their parties would not join Netanyahu’s new government unless Netanyahu abandoned his ultra-Orthodox allies. He did, but the new coalition was relatively short-lived.
When he formed his fourth coalition in 2015, Netanyahu vowed that he would never again abandon his ultra-Orthodox partners — his "natural partners." Since then, both sides have benefited from this arrangement. Netanyahu now had his famous “bloc,” which kept him in the house on Balfour Street, even though he failed to win three consecutive elections in a single year. In return, the ultra-Orthodox parties received just about everything they wanted. Just recently, the Knesset’s Finance Committee Chairman Moshe Gafni reached an agreement to transfer 400 million shekels ($118 million) to ultra-Orthodox yeshivas in exchange for agreeing to postpone the submission of a new state budget. Without a decision to postpone, and if the state budget isn’t approved, the Knesset is dispersed automatically.
And yet, even if the alliance between Netanyahu and the ultra-Orthodox had benefited them both, the ultra-Orthodox are currently not doing well. With the coronavirus pandemic raging, they are considered by many Israelis as the most despised sector in the country. In fact, they are being blamed for spreading the virus.
AL-MONITOR All-Access gives you unlimited access to all our journalism, the full Daily Briefing, exclusive interviews, premium newsletters, and live events — for less than $2/week.
