From the Liveblog of
Wednesday, October 22, 2025
Likud to kick Edelstein off Knesset committee after he votes for settlement annexation bill
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"
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud party has decided to remove MK Yuli Edelstein from his seat on the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee after he voted in favor of a West Bank settlement annexation bill that was boycotted by the party, a spokesperson for the lawmaker confirms to The Times of Israel.
Edelstein broke ranks to vote in favor, casting a decisive vote and helping the bill scrape by 25-24. In a statement, he said that he supported the measure because “Israeli sovereignty in all parts of our homeland is the order of the day” and called on “all Zionist factions to vote in favor.”
Edelstein was ousted as chairman of the powerful committee in July, after the ultra-Orthodox Shas and United Torah Judaism parties quit the government over his proposed enlistment bill, which levied harsh sanctions on draft evaders. He was replaced by fellow Likud MK Boaz Bismuth, who is currently working on a new draft of the legislation.
According to the Ynet news site, Likud is concerned that Edelstein will vote against Bismuth’s bill in the committee.
The Times of Israel Community.