The (, ''Assembly'') is the
Legislature of
Israel . It is located in
Jerusalem , the capital and seat of government of the
State Of Israel .
The
Legislative Branch of the
Israeli Government , the Knesset enacts
Law s, elects the prime minister (although he is ceremonially appointed by the President), supervises the work of the
Government , reserves the power to remove the
President Of The State and the
State Comptroller from office and to dissolve itself and call new elections.
The Knesset first convened on
February 14 ,
1949 . Every 4 years (or less if early elections are held, as is often the case), 120 members of the Knesset (MK) are elected by Israeli citizens who must be at least 18 years old to vote. The
Government Of Israel must be approved by a majority vote of the Knesset.
The Knesset has
De Jure Parliamentary Supremacy and can pass any laws by a simple majority, even those that conflict with the
Basic Laws Of Israel , as it is also a
Constituent Assembly . Nonetheless, the Knesset's right to function effectively has been greatly curtailed due to the inherent flaws of the low threshold
Party List Proportional Representation that usually results in a fractious government dependent on unstable coalitions. Hence,
De Facto , the
Supreme Court Of Israel has greatly expanded its authority through
Judicial Review to nearly every aspect of Knesset legislation at the expense of the Knesset's authority.
Models of Judicial Review Constitution for Israel
The Knesset is guarded by the
Knesset Guard .
The Knesset is located in Givat Ram, on a hilltop in western
Jerusalem , which before the
1948 Arab-Israeli War was an Arab settlement called
Sheikh Badr . The building was financed by
James A. De Rothschild as a gift to the State of Israel.
Before the construction of its permanent home, the Knesset met in several locations:
# building,
Jerusalem .
#. (Migdal HaOpera situated there today).
#
December 26 , 1949-
March 8 ,
1950 : Reconvenes in the Jewish Agency building, Jerusalem.
#
March 13 ,
1950 : Temporary location at "Froumine Building", King George Street, Jerusalem.
History of the Knesset building
# informs Prime Minister
David Ben-Gurion of his decision to bequeath funding for a permanent Knesset building.
#
October 14 ,
1958 : Laying of the cornerstone for new Knesset building.
#
August 31 ,
1966 : Dedication of the new building during the sixth Knesset.
#.
#
2005 : Additional wing under construction.
The Knesset building is built on land leased from the
Greek Orthodox Patriarchate Of Jerusalem .
Palestinians want Greek patriarch expelled Ecumenical News, 23 March 2005
Each Knesset session is generally known by its election number. Thus the Knesset elected by Israel's first election in 1949 is known as the . The current Knesset, elected in 2006 is the '''Seventeenth Knesset'''.
The composition of the seventeenth Knesset was determined by the
2006 Election . At present there are 18 parties represented in the Knesset on 12 lists (some parties run for election together on joint lists). Though it has not yet happened in the current session, in every Knesset to date parties have split up during the Knesset's term, leading to the creation of new parties or resulting in MKs sitting as independents.
The parties in the current Knesset are shown in the table below. Those in bold are part of the governing coalition.
