The yeshivas had been warned that sharp budget cuts were likely under the new unity government.
By World Israel News Staff
Torah scholars breathed a sigh of relief on Tuesday after a decision to maintain the government’s annual yeshiva allocation at NIS 1.17 billion, Israeli media reported.
The yeshivas had been warned that sharp budget cuts were likely under the new unity government, which includes Finance Minister Avigdor Liberman, a politician who has repeatedly threatened to slash ultra-Orthodox funding.
In July, Liberman announced that parents who do not work, including yeshiva students, would no longer receive state-funded childcare subsidies. The decision affected a large number of ultra-Orthodox families, as in many households, the father studies in yeshiva and does not work.
“We are pleased with the halt in aggressive cuts planned in the yeshiva budget, in recognition of the state value of Torah study as a national asset to the State of Israel,” the Higher Yeshiva Association said in a statement that was published by Israel National News.
The Hesder Yeshiva Association and the Higher Yeshiva Association thanked those who helped move the budget through, including MK Nir Orbach, Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, Interior Minister Ayelet Shaked and Chief of Staff Tal Gan Zvi.