Finance Ministry

Government to arrange unpaid leave for parents with kids under 14 as schools remain remote

The move has sparked outrage from parents across the country and opposition lawmakers as schools throughout the country have continued to operate in a remote-learning format.

An illustrative image of a supportive mother talking to her child.
Jerusalem's Mahane Yehuda market bustles as the war in Iran rages, March 5, 2026

Hitting hard: How the Iran war is decimating Israel's small businesses

Israeli shekel

Finance Ministry warns of NIS 9.5b. weekly loss, urges Home Front Command to ease restrictions

 New Israeli Shekel banknotes are seen in this picture illustration taken November 9, 2021

Government approves grants for residents whose homes were damaged in Iranian missile strikes


Middle Israel: Smotrich’s crushing Knesset defeat exposes the finance minister's limits - opinion

Smotrich is a light-year away from the Israeli consensus. Why does a man who represents but a marginal, detached, and minuscule part of Israeli society sit on its national chest?

EVEN BEZALEL Smotrich’s rivals agree that he is a smart man who studies complex issues quickly and knows how to make decisions. Here, the finance minister leads a faction meeting at the Knesset on Monday.

Business owners protest at Knesset as Smotrich raises Israel's import tax exemption

The government approved Smotrich's order on Sunday and is expected to be finalized through a vote in the Knesset plenum on Monday evening.

Finance Minister and Head of the Religious Zionist Party Bezalel Smotrich leads a faction meeting at the Knesset, the Israeli parliament in Jerusalem, February 16, 2026.

Smotrich doubles down on refusal to enlist daughter, claims IDF is 'no place for women'

In an interview, Smotrich also addressed his comments on crime rates in Arab communities, saying, "There is a culture of murder, killing, and jihad in Arab society."

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich arrives to a conference of the Israeli newspaper Makor Rishon in Jerusalem, December 25, 2025

Finance Minister Smotrich says he won't educate his daughter to enlist in the IDF

The statement, made during a Religious Zionist Party Knesset press conference, comes as the government fast-tracks a haredi conscription bill.

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich (RZP) speaks at a Religious Zionist Party press conference at the Knesset in Jerusalem on February 16, 2026.

Israel to build new international airport in Negev, PMO announces

The project, initially approved by the Economic Affairs Committee in March of 2025, is also intended to help alleviate traffic at Ben-Gurion Airport.

Passengers at the Ben Gurion International airport near Tel Aviv on September 18, 2025.

Israel to launch platform for securing cross-government research

The project, called RAKMA, is designed to solve a problem that has long limited government research

 An illustrative image of an Israeli using security programs on a computer.

IDF moves to quell reservist backlash over service cuts tied to post-war budget deal

Broadly speaking, the changes surround the agreement between the IDF and the Finance Ministry to reduce the number of standing reservists on duty on any given day from 60,000 to 40,000.

Reservists train during a battalion wide exercise in the Golan Heights.

Thousands of shekels deducted from reservists' salaries in 2025, Knesset panel discusses

The discussion was convened after reservists said the deductions were made following the implementation of a new salary mechanism in May 2025.

 IDF reservists joining the "David Brigades," the five new reservist brigades announced by IDF Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi, December 17, 2024.

Netanyahu convenes emergency meeting as haredi parties threaten to block state budget vote

Both haredi parties have threatened to withhold support for the state budget unless agreements are reached on the draft law to avoid conscription.

 Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich speaks with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as lawmakers gather at the Knesset plenum to vote on a bill that would limit some Supreme Court power, in Jerusalem July 24, 2023.

Israel’s debt-to-GDP ratio rose to 68.6% in 2025 due to war, rebuilding expenses - Finance Min.

"The upward trend in the debt-to-GDP ratio stems from the security spending required following the war," Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said.

Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Minister of Finance Bezalel Smotrich attend a discussion and a vote on the state budget at the assembly hall of the Israeli parliament in Jerusalem, February 7, 2024.