According to Israel’s Basic Law: The Government, if the Knesset cannot submit a candidate within the 21-day period, it is automatically dissolved and new elections are called. Anyone who does secure a 61-vote majority has 14 additional days to form a government before an election must be called.
Israeli President Reuven Rivlin has informed the Speaker of the Knesset, Benny Gantz, that he is entrusting the parliament with the task of forming a government after the leader of Kachol Lavan (Blue and White) failed to present a government by the midnight Wednesday deadline.
Gantz and incumbent Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu failed to sign a unity deal despite Rivlin granting Gantz a 48-hour mandate extension to do so “on the understanding that they are very close to reaching an agreement between them.”
In a letter to Gantz, President Rivlin wrote: ‘’We are in a third consecutive election campaign this year, without any elected official able to form a government that would have the confidence of the Knesset. As president, it is my duty according to Basic Law: The Government (2001) [hereinafter ‘the Basic Law’]to act in a way that a government will be formed in Israel, as soon as possible, and in accordance with this I have used my authority in the elections for the 23rd Knesset.’’
“I hope that the Knesset members will be able to form a majority in such a way that a government can be formed as soon as possible, and to prevent a fourth round of elections,” he wrote.
According to Israel’s Basic Law: The Government, if the Knesset cannot submit a candidate within the 21-day period, it is automatically dissolved and new elections are called. Anyone who does secure a 61-vote majority has 14 additional days to form a government before an election must be called.
Passover curfew lifted
In the meantime, Israel awoke Thursday to the lifting of a nationwide curfew imposed for the end of the Passover holiday, while the government is reportedly considering additional easing of general lockdown directives.
The national coronavirus death toll stood at 140 as of Thursday morning, while 174 people are in serious condition, 140 of whom are intubated, according to Israel’s Health Ministry. As of Thursday morning, 9,827 Israelis had COVID-19, the disease caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus, with 2,624 having fully recovered.
As of 5 a.m, inter-city travel was again permitted, subject to general lockdown restrictions, and limited public transportation was reinstituted. The full closure had been in place since Tuesday at 5 p.m.
Though bakeries throughout Israel are traditionally swarmed the night after Passover by citizens eager for a taste of the leavened delicacies eschewed during the holiday, authorities forbade them to reopen before 2 a.m., to reduce public gathering.
Though Bnei Brak remained officially sealed off until Thursday afternoon, roadblocks were largely removed by Wednesday night.
Israel’s Cabinet was scheduled to discuss on Thursday afternoon steps in a gradual return to a degree of normalcy, though officials emphasized that it would be a long time before the country returned to full, pre-pandemic normalcy.
Though there were some initial reports speaking of a possible return to school for millions of Israeli children from preschool through high school, the move was apparently deemed infeasible at this time.
Israeli Defense Minister Naftali Bennett on Wednesday night pushed for Israel to begin reopening the industrial, trade and service sectors, saying maintaining the status quo “will cause critical harm to Israel and its citizens.”
Additional lockdowns are being considered from Israeli Memorial Day through Independence Day, the evening of April 27th through April 29th, to prevent large gatherings.