Israel approves historic wartime budget after marathon vote, missile alerts

Israel’s parliament approved the largest state budget in the country’s history, passing a wartime spending plan that significantly boosts defence funding while allocating billions of shekels to ultra-Orthodox institutions.

The Knesset voted 62–55 in favor of the NIS 850.6 billion ($271 billion) budget after a marathon session marked by more than 13 hours of opposition filibustering and repeated interruptions from missile warning sirens. Lawmakers were at times forced to cast votes from a fortified room, The Times of Israel reports.

The passage of the budget narrowly averted early elections, which would have been triggered had lawmakers failed to meet a legal deadline.

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich hailed the plan as “a budget that takes care of everyone and fights the cost of living,” adding: “We are passing this budget under a right-wing government that will serve out its full term and complete its mission in security, the economy, and in reforming the judicial system.”

“Anyone who votes against the budget is voting against Israel’s security, against tax relief for working people in Israel, and against taxation of the banks,” he said.

Opposition leaders sharply criticized the measure. Yesh Atid leader Yair Lapid called it “the greatest theft in the history of the state,” adding: “This isn’t a budget – it’s a robbery.” He later wrote: “This is a collection of lowly thieves who are disconnected from the people, who are looting the citizens of Israel while they’re in bomb shelters.”

The budget includes record defense spending, with NIS 143 billion ($45.8 billion) allocated to the Defense Ministry, described by Smotrich as the “core” of the plan. “This budget enables the state to win,” he said.

A controversial element of the package is increased funding for Haredi institutions. Amendments approved during the session allocated hundreds of millions of shekels to programs favored by ultra-Orthodox parties, raising total funding for such institutions to over NIS 5 billion.

Critics said the allocations, alongside funding for settlements and other coalition priorities, came at the expense of broader public needs. Former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett described the budget as the “most reckless and anti-Zionist” in Israel’s history, while opposition figures warned it could deepen social divisions.

Despite the backlash, coalition leaders defended the plan as essential during wartime, emphasizing its provisions for defense, welfare, and infrastructure. The vote ensures the government’s stability for now, with elections next scheduled for October.

By Vafa Guliyeva