Knesset Vote on Family Reunification Law Set Even Though It Could Fail

A law that prevents Palestinians who marry Israelis from receiving citizenship or legal residency in Israel will be voted on by the full Israeli parliament later on Monday even though it did not have enough votes to get out of committee. The legislation, known as the family unification law, was first passed in 2003 but must be reapproved every year. And until now that annual renewal has been a slam dunk since the law is considered important for national security. But lawmakers from the Ra’am and Meretz parties that are part of the government will not vote in favor of the legislation, to which they are both ideologically opposed. And even though the right-wing parties support the legislation, Opposition Leader Binyamin Netanyahu has suggested that all opposition lawmakers vote against it in order to embarrass the new government and highlight the fact that it has as a partner an Arab party considered by many on the right to be a “fifth column.” The legislation did not have enough votes on Monday morning to get out of the Knesset Arrangements Committee and move to the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee. The legislation is set to expire on Tuesday.