Daily Briefing Jan. 1: Day 453 – Drama in Knesset as PM leaves hospital bed for vote

Welcome to The Times of Israel’s Daily Briefing, your 20-minute audio update on what’s happening in Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish world.

Political correspondent Sam Sokol joins host Jessica Steinberg on today’s show.

Sokol discusses Tuesday’s political machinations in the Knesset as National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir and Housing Minister Yitzhak Goldknopf tried to defeat their own coalition’s budget-related legislation.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, recovering from prostate removal surgery at the Hadassah Medical Center in Jerusalem, was forced to leave his hospital bed and head to the Knesset to vote. Another Knesset member, Likud’s Boaz Bismuth, who was in the midst of the seven-day mourning period for his mother, was also compelled to leave the shiva house and come to the Knesset.

Sokol also provides a brief description of large fragment of a Houthi missile that landed in his Beit Shemesh neighborhood late Monday night.

For news updates, please check out The Times of Israel’s ongoing live blog.

Discussed articles include:

PM leaves hospital to cast decisive vote on a budget law, thwarting Ben Gvir revolt

Coalition factions threaten to vote against key budget bill over cuts, Haredi draft

In rare cross-aisle cooperation, MKs back bill to penalize ministers who snub oversight

IDF downs ballistic missile from Yemen as sirens heard across central Israel

Subscribe to The Times of Israel Daily Briefing on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts. This episode was produced by the Pod-Waves.

Check out yesterday’s Daily Briefing episode here: