זה קורה עכשיו בחצות: הדלק יורד בחצי שקל! ככה נלחמים ביוקר המחייה 🇮🇱 pic.twitter.com/6In5RgcP72

— בצלאל סמוטריץ' (@bezalelsm) September 6, 2026

As you might recall, the monthly adjustment to the price of gasoline hit historic highs at the beginning of September, hitting the price of 8.25nis per liter of gasoline. The price is adjusted monthly based on the price of oil which fluctuates all the time. The past couple of years has seen the price of gasoline get very expensive due to the ongoing war/conflict with Iran which has the price of oil fluctuating wildly sometimes going unreasonably high due to closures of the Strait of Hormuz (Strait of Trump?). However, the price of oil is only what makes the price of gasoline fluctuate monthly - the factor that makes gas in Israel so expensive is the very high excise tax (aka the blu) levied on gasoline plus the VAT. The blu tax is about 3.66 per liter making up about 44% of the cost of the gasoline, plus the VAT being 18%... so about 60%, give or take, of the price of gasoline that you pay at the pump, in Israel, is pure taxes. 

So when gas hit the historic high of 8.25nis per liter, Smotritch decided he would issue an order to cut the tax and lower the price. This has been done before and is considered a legitimate method of easing the burden a bit. It hit a snag as it had to be decided if this decision is allowed during an election season or not. once it was approved, Smotritch signed the order and all is good. 

the problem with the above video is Smotritch talking about this being the way to fight inflation and to fight the cost of living increases, etc... Smotritch signed a temporary order for cutting the tax, not a permanent order. It is in place for just two months. he did not lower taxes, he lowered the tax until the election. And in doing so, he also did not cut spending anywhere else at the same time to pay for it, but just threw this deficit on to the next government (which he might or might not be part of) to figure out how to pay for. 

Smotritch can definitely walk around saying things like we cut the pain for you so you wouldnt have to poay so much at the pump right now and things like that but fighting inflation with a temporary two month order without any cuts to cover it?  This doesn't combat inflation in any way.