MembersCivil Marriage Bill Once Again Pushed Through Knesset

For the second time this year, a bill is being proposed in the Knesset to allow for civil marriage in Israel.

For the past year, travel abroad has been highly restricted as a result of COVID-19, causing Israelis both wanting or left with no choice but to marry outside of the country’s Chief Rabbinate to be unable to do so. Due to these extenuating circumstances, the acting Minister of Justice, Benny Gantz, is proposing legislation allowing for couples—especially those who are legally unable to marry through the Rabbinate—to register through the Ministry of Justice and receive the same status as any other married couple. Gantz received support from Attorney General Avichai Mendelblit regarding the bill’s legal standing and an initial draft is ready to be pushed through the Knesset.

Gantz remarked that they are working to allow couples faced with nearly no option for marriage in their own country “the basic right to register as a married couple during this period when the skies are closed.” He further added that this law...