2024-03-01 00:01:56
This content was published on 01 March 2024 – 01:01
JERUSALEM (Reuters) – Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Thursday that his government would find a way to end the exemption for ultra-Orthodox Jews from military service, in the face of political pressure that threatens the future of his ruling coalition.
Netanyahu added in a press conference, “We will set goals for recruiting ultra-Orthodox Jews into the IDF and into the national civil services. We will also determine means to implement these goals.”
In 2018, the Israeli Supreme Court invalidated a law exempting ultra-Orthodox males from conscription, noting that the need required the participation of all Israeli society in bearing the burden of military service.
The Israeli Knesset failed to reach a new arrangement, and an order issued by the government to suspend compulsory recruitment of extremists expires in March.
The hard-line parties, along with parties belonging to the extreme right, helped Netanyahu win a slight parliamentary majority, but in previous governments, these parties made exemption from conscription a condition for remaining in the coalition.
Netanyahu’s announcement appeared to be in response to a pledge made by the Defense Minister to use his veto power to repeal a law that would allow the exemption to continue unless the government reaches an agreement that paves the way for the recruitment of ultra-Orthodox Jews.
Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Galant said on Wednesday, “We appreciate and support those who devote their lives to studying the Jewish Holy Book, however, there is no spiritual existence without a physical existence.”
Exemptions for ultra-Orthodox Jews have long been a source of contention with more secular citizens, and the current costly mobilization for the Gaza war has fueled that dispute.
Ultra-Orthodox Jews demand the right to study in theological institutes instead of serving in the army for three years. Some say their religious lifestyle may clash with military norms and traditions, while others express their opposition to the liberal state.
Ultra-Orthodox Jews constitute 13 percent of Israel’s population, a percentage that is expected to increase to 19 percent by 2035 due to high birth rates among them. Economists say the draft exemption keeps some of them unnecessarily in seminaries and out of the workforce.
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