Finance Committee approved NIS 7.387 billion for the Defense establishment

On Thursday, the Finance Committee approved NIS 7.387 billion for the defense establishment as an authorization to commit (credit facility). The transfer of money was defined as classified, and the details will be given only to the Joint Committee on the Defense Budget. Knesset members asked why this amount was not included in the state budget base approved by the Knesset only on November 4, 2021, to which they replied that the budgeting decision was made only in recent weeks.
This is a relatively high amount, especially in light of the fact that several months ago, Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, Finance Minister Avigdor Lieberman and Defense Minister Bnei Gantz agreed to increase the defense system's budget by NIS 7 billion. In a summary from the end of July 2021, on the eve of the government's discussion of the budget for 2021-2, it was determined that the defense establishment's budget for 2022 will be NIS 58 billion.
The Ministry of Defense then demanded a budget increase of NIS 9 billion, including NIS 3 billion in reimbursement for Operation The Guardian of the Walls and the introduction of NIS 6 billion into the defense base's budget base for 2022. In the end, an additional NIS 7 billion was agreed.
On the eve of the end of the 2021 budget year, the Finance Committee today approved budget transfers totaling NIS 8.58 billion - of which the transfer to the Ministry of Defense is a part. The reason for the urgency is that in the middle of next week the Accountant General in the Treasury will close the budget system for making changes to the budget.