Israel Approves Record 2026 Budget, Averts Elections

Israel's parliament approved the country's largest-ever annual budget early Monday in a marathon overnight session, averting automatic early elections and allowing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government to serve out its term through the fall.

The Knesset passed the 2026 spending plan by a vote of 62 to 55, just days before the April 1 deadline that would have triggered the body's dissolution under Israeli law. The budget totals 850.6 billion shekels, equivalent to about $270 billion, marking a significant increase driven by wartime needs. Discussions were interrupted three times by sirens warning of Iranian missiles targeting Jerusalem, according to a parliament spokesperson. Lawmakers convened in the building's auditorium, which is nearer to a bomb shelter than the main plenum.

The plan allocates a record 143 billion shekels, or roughly $45 billion, to the Defense Ministry, a 20 percent rise from previous levels to support Israel's ongoing conflicts. This includes funding for the war against Iran, now in its early stages, as well as the two-year conflict in Gaza that began after the Hamas attack on October 7, 2023. Additional resources cover operations against Hezbollah...