Smotrich pushes to cut 3.63 billion shekels from future budget for Arab society

The Israeli government approved Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich's decision to transfer 1.03 billion shekels to the security budget for "advancing secret purchases," with the funding source being a future reduction from the budget of the five-year plan for developing Arab society. The Marker newspaper noted that the government never approved a new five-year plan for Arab society, making the reduction "election propaganda for Smotrich."

The Israeli government approved on Wednesday Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich's decision to transfer 1.03 billion shekels to the security budget for "advancing secret purchases." In the decision text, Smotrich stated that the funding source is a future reduction from the budget of the five-year plan for developing Arab society, amounting to 170 million shekels in 2027, 342 million in 2028, and 453 million in 2029. However, The Marker newspaper noted that the government never approved a new five-year plan for Arab society, and that this budget is among budgets that may be approved later, meaning the reduction from an unapproved budget "is nothing more than election propaganda for Smotrich, who wants to boast that he funds the security apparatus at the expense of Arab society." Smotrich said that during the day he will pass another government decision reducing 2.6 billion shekels for urgent matters he will not discuss now, and added that there is a deal for 12 Apache helicopters that should be signed today, considering the deal a mistake and the benefit of Apache helicopters minimal.