TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) 鈥� Israel鈥檚 parliament dissolved early Friday after passing a marathon of bills in the last moments of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu鈥檚 governing coalition.
The Knesset, which was scheduled to break for its summer recess on Friday, will not reconvene before the elections scheduled on Oct. 27.
The expected dissolution comes as Netanyahu is struggling to hold onto power ahead of the next elections as grinds toward the third anniversary of the Oct. 7 attack that sparked nearly three years of war. Israeli polls are showing a groundswell of support for opposition parties, led by former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett and a
Over the past week, the Knesset passed several controversial laws in marathon sessions as Netanyahu attempted to ram through several of his pet projects.
Earlier this week, the that effectively in the military in an attempt to ensure ultra-Orthodox parties join Netanyahu鈥檚 coalition in the next government.
The Knesset also recently passed several bills connected with Netanyahu鈥檚 attempts to overhaul the judiciary, including increasing government control over broadcast media and weakening the role of the attorney general. Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara has opposed the overhaul, and been a
鈥淲e are completing a four-year term, we passed nine budgets and hundreds of bills, I thank you for the trust you placed in me, through which together we succeeded in maintaining a four-year term,鈥� Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana said as he announced the dissolution.
Completing a full, four-year term is a rare occurrence throughout Israeli history.
The last time Israel鈥檚 government fulfilled a full term without breaking for early elections was in 1988. Israel has no term limits, and Netanyahu has served more terms than any other prime minister in Israel鈥檚 history, but it is rare even for him to finish a full, four-year term.
Between 2019 and 2022, Israelis went to the polls five times. Israel holds elections on average every 2.4 years, making it second-lowest ranked country in the OECD for periods between elections, a marker of political instability, according to the Israel Democracy Institute.
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