Weekly roundup of world briefs

Knesset passes ‘Smotrich-Deri’ amendment

(JNS) — Israel’s Knesset on Tuesday morning passed an amendment allowing Shas Party head Aryeh Deri to serve as a minister and Religious Zionism leader Bezalel Smotrich to become a second minister in the Defense Ministry.

The amendment to Basic Law: The Government, which passed by a 63-vote majority following an all-night filibuster, merged two bills.

The first limits a law prohibiting elected officials convicted of a criminal offense from serving as a minister to apply only to those serving active jail sentences. Deri, convicted of tax offenses in Febr...