JERUSALEM (AP) Israel's prime minister has abandoned a contested labor bill for female settlers that critics claimed would entrench Israeli control of the West Bank.
Benjamin Netanyahu's office said Sunday that a military decree would replace the proposed legislation and make labor laws in the West Bank for both Israeli and Palestinians women mirror those in Israel.
A pro-settler party lawmaker said she pushed for the bill after learning of pregnant settlers who'd been unfairly fired. Critics said the true intent of the bill was to enact a creeping annexation over the Israeli controlled areas Palestinians want for a state.
Israel has never annexed the West Bank and it technically remains under military rule. Israel relies heavily on military decrees, rather than parliament, for laws in the region.
