State representative admits ultra-Orthodox education funding passed without Knesset approval
Israel’s High Court on Thursday kept an injunction in place freezing state funding to ultra-Orthodox schools, after it emerged that about NIS 1 billion ($270 million) had been transferred without Knesset approval.
During the hearing, a Knesset representative admitted the funds were moved without parliamentary authorization. Justice Yael Willner sharply criticized the move, calling it illegal and saying the Finance Ministry failed to inform lawmakers or obtain proper legal approval.
The court rejected the state’s argument that the freeze was irrelevant because the money had already been transferred, and allowed petitioners to update their case in light of the new disclosures.
Separately, Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara told the education minister that continued state funding is conditional on schools teaching core curriculum subjects.
Kan.org.il is the Hebrew news website of the The Israeli Public Broadcasting Corporation
