Yair Golan Sets Conditions for Government Partnership With Haredi Parties

Democrats chairman Yair Golan said on November 7 that he was willing to cooperate with Haredi parties in forming an alternative Israeli government, provided they accepted changes involving military enlistment, employment, education and local Shabbat services. He described his goal as replacing Benjamin Netanyahu's government with a government of rescue and change that would protect Israel's democratic character, security and future. Golan said he sought a partnership with the Haredi public rather than punishment. “True partnership requires mutual responsibility,” he said. His conditions included military service for Haredi men, greater participation in the workforce and education that would give children the tools to earn a decent living. He argued that the middle class could not continue carrying the economic and security burdens alone, presenting reciprocal obligations as a condition for political cooperation. On Shabbat, Golan said municipalities representing his constituency should be able to offer recreation, cafés and public transportation. He framed those demands as mutual respect for different ways of life. Using a comparison between Bnei Brak and Jerusalem's Mea Shearim neighborhood on one side and Ramat Gan on the other, he said his party would not abandon its positions to secure a partnership. Golan stressed that his offer was not a blank cheque; no agreed coalition framework was announced.