The haredi parties reportedly agreed that the judicial reform legislation isn't in their best interests and has helped spark backlash against haredi IDF conscription.
The heads of the United Torah Judaism (UTJ) Party demanded Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu immediately halt all judicial reform legislation until the IDF haredi conscription law is passed, local news outlets reported Tuesday.
According to N12 News, the leaders of the haredi parties agreed that, not only does the judicial reform legislation not serve the interests of their constituents, but it has actually led to a growing struggle against the haredi public, specifically around IDF conscription.
Prominent haredi news site Kikar Hashabat reported that United Torah Judaism demanded that the reform be halted indefinitely and be advanced only if there is broad agreement with the opposition.
The report said the UTJ believes the overhaul has divided Israelis too much and they’re not willing to continue to support it, even if it means that Justice Minister Yariv Levin quits, as he’s threatened to do if the bills aren’t advanced quickly enough.
UTJ has set the haredi conscription bill as their priority and stressed that it needs to come first, ahead of continued judicial reform, Ynet reported.
United Torah Judaism MKs Yitzchak Goldknopf and Moshe Gafni at a vote
in the plenum session at the assembly hall of the Knesset, the Israeli
parliament in Jerusalem, on December 20, 2022. (credit: YONATAN
SINDEL/FLASH90)The haredi party leaders reportedly plan to vote against any of the unilateral judicial reform legislations pushed by Levin and are urging Netanyahu to push for renewed negotiations to arrive at a broader consensus.
However, the Shas Party, the other haredi party in the coalition, has come out in support of the judicial reform. In a statement yesterday, the party said Shas leader MK Arye Deri is Netanyahu’s partner in trying to push the overhaul through, Walla reported.
Both Likud and UTJ leaders issued statements denying any strife, stressing that both parties are working to pass both the conscription law and the judicial reform laws. Coalition MKs are “not looking to force conscription,” MK Ohad Tal (Religious Zionism) told The Jerusalem Post on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, MK Eli Dalal (Likud) told Army Radio that “Everyone should be recruited, including the ultra-Orthodox.”
The debate over Israeli judicial reform and haredi IDF conscription
Within their request for a new bill exempting yeshiva students from military service, the haredi parties want to include a clause that would make the bill exempt from judicial review by the High Court of Justice. This is in response to the fact that the High Court struck down the most recent incarnation of a haredi draft National Service bill, which they ruled was too sweeping and violated equality. The bill has been delayed more than a dozen times, with the most recent deadline for a new law set for March 31, 2024.
If a new bill is not passed by then, the IDF can begin to send out draft notices to all 18-year-olds in the ultra-Orthodox sector, as is done to all other Israelis.
The proposed Conscription Law seeks to lower the age of permanent exemption from 26 to 22, with a focus on promoting engagement in National Service and employment within the haredi sector. To offset potential backlash, the bill is set to include an increase in benefits for those who are drafted or serving in the reserves.
Critics have said this bill, like the previous one, is too sweeping. Opposition MKs have spoken out about this, with Yisrael Beytenu Party head Avigdor Liberman essentially making his entire party platform about drafting the ultra-Orthodox. Moreover, it could have long-term effects on the IDF’s readiness, as the haredi sector continues to grow and take up a sizable percentage of Israel’s population.
Surprisingly, this threat was reiterated by Hezbollah terrorist group leader Hassan Nasrallah, who said a “major blow to [the IDF] will be if the Knesset approves the new Conscription Law.”
Regarding opposition criticism, Tal mentioned that even when opposition MKs speak out about drafting all members of the haredi population, it is not actually what they want. “It is clear they don’t. The IDF does not want it either,” he said.
There is a fear as well that the bill in its proposed form would spark a new round of such protests throughout the country that even coalition voters would speak out against them.
Haredi leaders maintain that Torah study is an essential service to the country – and have even proposed a Basic Law to that effect – and that their military service is not needed. This is not a universally held religious belief, as religious Zionism leaders promote military service as an essential Halachic commandment. Tal noted that significant numbers of their community serve as IDF officers while completing yeshiva studies.
He also said any plan must be made with the security implications in mind. The bill is currently being formulated by coalition leaders, the IDF, and the Defense Ministry.
Troy O. Fritzhand, Jerusalem Post Staff
Source:https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/politics-and-diplomacy/article-754837
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