Israel’s Netanyahu and allies pass new budget with sweeping grants for settlements, ultra-Orthodox

By ILAN BEN ZION
Associated Press

JERUSALEM (AP) — Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government has passed a new two-year budget, a step that could bring some stability to his coalition and clear the way for it to press ahead with its religious, pro-settlement agenda. The vote dragged on overnight, with the budgets for 2023 and 2024 finally passing on Wednesday with a 64-56 vote in parliament after daybreak. It followed weeks of tense negotiations between Netanyahu and the parties in his coalition. The new budget has been criticized for allocating nearly $4 billion in discretionary funds, much of it for ultra-Orthodox and pro-settler parties.