From the Liveblog of
Sunday, May 17, 2026
PM set to begin pressuring coalition holdouts to support draft exemption bill
Sam Sokol is the Times of Israel's political correspondent. 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 has begun putting pressure on some coalition MKs opposed to the ultra-Orthodox draft exemption bill and will meet with them tomorrow, two days before deliberations on the controversial legislation renew, a coalition opponent of the bill tells The Times of Israel, confirming earlier reporting by Channels 12 and 13.
“He will publicly shame anybody who is against it,” the source states. “He’s going to meet one-on-one with Likud MKs only.”
Channel 12 reports that Netanyahu is planning to exert strong pressure on lawmakers, including by leveling threats regarding the upcoming Likud primary elections.
It remains unclear who will actually be meeting with the prime minister. Multiple coalition lawmakers opposed to the bill tell The Times of Israel this evening that they have not been invited by the prime minister, although one says that it is likely only those on the fence who have been summoned.
According to Channel 13, Netanyahu hopes to bring around some of the strongest opponents of the bill, hoping that he can convince them to support the bill publicly.
Asked about the reported meeting, Likud MK Eli Revivo replies that he was “not invited to such a meeting” and assumes “that anyone whose opposition is a matter of principle and ideology will stand firm in their position, and the rest, as usually happens in these situations, will fall into line.”
This morning, the controversial legislation was placed back on the parliamentary agenda for Wednesday, with a discussion planned in the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee to prepare the controversial legislation for the final two readings needed for it to pass into law.
The announcement came shortly after Haredi political sources told the press that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office offered to resume discussions in the committee in an effort to postpone elections until October, while the Haredim want a September date, during the High Holidays.
The Times of Israel Community.