The law was passed in the final reading with 58 votes in favor and 54 against, just days before the Knesset is set to dissolve ahead of the parliamentary elections on October 27. Its approval followed several months of intense negotiations between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the ultra-Orthodox parties Shas and United Torah Judaism, which support his government.
Debates on Conscription and Elections
Leaders of the ultra-Orthodox community traditionally oppose conscription, believing that military service distracts young men from studying religious texts and threatens their way of life. Meanwhile, due to a shortage of military personnel, an increasing number of politicians are calling for the extension of military duty to the ultra-Orthodox.
According to an agreement in place since the establishment of Israel in 1948, ultra-Orthodox men who fully dedicate themselves to studying religious texts are exempt from military service. However, due to personnel shortages in the army, the Supreme Court has repeatedly questioned this exemption, concluding in 2024 that the government must begin conscripting ultra-Orthodox men.
The new law does not eliminate mandatory conscription but temporarily suspends the arrests of draft-age students studying in Talmudic schools who fail to appear for their summons until November 30 — after the elections. To qualify as a student, one must dedicate at least 45 hours a week to studying religious texts.
Reaction from the Opposition and the Coalition
Immediately after the law was passed, opposition leaders condemned it, shouting from the parliamentary benches: “Shame! Shame!” Gadi Eisenkot, former Chief of the General Staff of the army and Benjamin Netanyahu’s main rival in the upcoming elections, criticized the coalition on social media platform X, calling it “the most irresponsible coalition in the history of Israel.” He argued that “this government decides to weaken the army in the midst of a brutal war […] and gives carte blanche to those who evade military service.”
Coalition members defended the law, arguing that arrests of draft dodgers would not aid in their enlistment in the army. “Arrests have the opposite effect of what is desired,” said Boaz Bismuth, chairman of the parliamentary committee on foreign affairs and defense. On Monday, parliament also passed a separate law that enshrines the study of Jewish religious texts as a “fundamental value” of the state — a move seen as strengthening the ultra-Orthodox arguments for maintaining the exemption from military service.
Source: Libération
