From the Liveblog of
Tuesday, April 14, 2026
Knesset Finance Committee chair rejects addresses by northern leaders, promises regional tour
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on GoogleSam Sokol is a former political correspondent at The Times of Israel. He was previously a reporter for the Jerusalem Post, Jewish Telegraphic Agency and Haaretz. He is the author of "Putin’s Hybrid War and the Jews"
Knesset Finance Committee chairman Hanoch Milwidsky (Likud) tells lawmakers that he turned down requests by some northern community leaders to remotely address today’s parliamentary discussion on formulating a wartime Economic Assistance Plan Bill, explaining that focusing on the hard-hit region would prevent progress on wider efforts to provide economic assistance to businesses harmed by the war.
“I received many requests from heads of local authorities in the north who wanted to join via Zoom. It is important for me to clarify that the current discussion focuses on formulating a national compensation framework for all business owners in Israel and does not focus on the situation of the northern local authorities. Businesses in the north are part of the general business plan, and they are entitled to a dedicated and enhanced framework, built according to the unique characteristics and severe damage to the region,” Milwidsky says.
Having too many parties attend the meeting remotely would impede progress on the compensation plan for businesses, he says, adding that he and Knesset Internal Affairs Committee chairman MK Yitzhak Kroizer (Otzma Yehudit) are planning to bring lawmakers from both panels “on a tour of the north to see where we can help.”
Last month, lawmakers and representatives of communities on the northern and Gaza borders protested government-wide cuts in the 2026 state budget, which they said would significantly harm efforts to rehabilitate and develop frontline towns and cities. In response, the government announced its approval of NIS 100 million ($31.6 million) in “immediate aid” to regional councils for dealing with “emergency expenditures” due to the war with Iran — less than critics said had been cut.
During a discussion held by the Special Committee for Strengthening and Developing the Negev and Galilee on protection gaps in the north yesterday, committee chairman Oded Forer (Yisrael Beytenu) told lawmakers that only 20 percent of the funds allocated to build bomb shelters for 21 communities within five kilometers of the northern border have been disbursed, leaving the majority of eligible residents without shelter.
According to Forer, data from the Defense Ministry showed that NIS 900 million ($295 million) earmarked to help residents build protected spaces in Israel’s north have not been transferred.
The Times of Israel Community.