Brief news
The Supreme Court has ordered the military to draft ultra-Orthodox men for obligatory duty, a decision that could topple Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government. The landmark verdict ends a decades-old system that exempted ultra-Orthodox men from military service while requiring secular Jews to enlist. Critics argue that this discriminatory structure has split Israel’s Jewish majority over who should protect the country. In 2017, the court overturned a statute that codified exemptions, but judicial extensions and government delays delayed a successor for years. The court found that ultra-Orthodox citizens must serve in Israel’s military without a law.
Netanyahu’s powerful ultra-Orthodox coalition partners reject any system modification, fearing that lifting the exemptions would tear Israeli society apart. The military is expected to follow Israel’s highest court’s ruling once it forms a plan to draft thousands of members of a population deeply opposed to service and follows a cloistered and modest lifestyle the military may not be ready to accommodate.
About 13% of Israel’s 9.9 million people are ultra-Orthodox, with their high birthrate making them the fastest-growing demographic segment at 4% annually. Critics fear that military contact with secular society will deter believers from stringent observance. The coalition’s draft dispute will intensify after Tuesday’s judgement, with ultra-Orthodox politicians may have to decide whether to stay in office due to pressure from religious authorities and supporters.
Illustrated news
Jerusalem — As Israel continues to wage war in Gaza, the Supreme Court unanimously ordered the military to draft ultra-Orthodox men for obligatory duty on Tuesday, a major decision that might topple Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government.
The landmark verdict ends a decades-old system that exempted ultra-Orthodox men from military service while requiring secular Jews to enlist. The structure, critics say is discriminatory, has split Israel’s Jewish majority over who should protect the country.
In 2017, the court overturned a statute that codified exemptions, but judicial extensions and government delays delayed a successor for years. The court found that ultra-Orthodox citizens must serve in Israel’s military without a law.
Ultra-Orthodox men have traditionally been exempt from the conscription, which is mandatory for ordinary Jewish men and women, who serve three and two years, respectively, and reserve duty until age 40.
This exemption has long angered the secular public, a gap that has grown throughout the eight-month-old war as the military has called up tens of thousands of soldiers and argues it needs all the personnel it can obtain. After Hamas’ Oct. 7 strike, over 600 troops died.
Netanyahu’s powerful ultra-Orthodox coalition partners reject any system modification. They might leave the coalition if the exemptions are lifted, causing the government to fall and forcing new elections at a time when its popularity is low.
Netanyahu may struggle to delay or reinstate exemptions in the current climate. The court heard government lawyers argue that enlisting ultra-Orthodox men would “tear Israeli society apart.”
Likud criticised the verdict, claiming a bill endorsed by Netanyahu would address the draft issue in parliament. Critics believe it fails Israel’s wartime demands.
“The real solution to the draft problem is not a Supreme Court ruling,” it said.
The court held that the state was engaging in “invalid selective enforcement, which represents a serious violation of the rule of law, and the principle according to which all individuals are equal before the law.”
The military has claimed it can draft 3,000 ultra-Orthodox this year, although it did not specify how many.
Shuki Friedman, a Jerusalem think tank vice-president and religion and state expert, says 66,000 ultra-Orthodox men are eligible for conscription.
The military is expected to follow Israel’s highest court’s ruling once it forms a plan to draft thousands of members of a population that’s deeply opposed to service and follows a cloistered and modest lifestyle the military may not be ready to accommodate. No army response was immediate.
State payments for seminaries where exempted ultra-Orthodox men study were also suspended by the court. The court suspended seminary finances earlier this year.
The coalition’s ultra-Orthodox party leader, Cabinet minister Yitzhak Goldknopf, termed the verdict “very unfortunate and disappointing” on social media. He did not declare his party would quit the administration.
About 13% of Israel’s 9.9 million people are ultra-Orthodox. Its high birthrate makes it the fastest-growing demographic segment at 4% annually. The State Control Committee of the Israeli parliament reports that less than 10% of 13,000 ultra-Orthodox males who turn 18 enlist.
The ultra-Orthodox believe their full-time religious study protects the state. Many fear that military contact with secular society will deter believers from stringent observance.
The ultra-Orthodox attend special seminaries that emphasise religious subjects above math, English, and science. They are unprepared for military service or secular labour, say critics.
Religious women enjoy less controversial exemptions because they are not expected to fight.
Most Israeli Palestinian citizens do not serve, hence the court verdict does not touch their status. Since they support Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank, some Israelis view them as a fifth column and their connections to the military are strained.
The coalition’s draft dispute will intensify after Tuesday’s judgement. Ultra-Orthodox politicians may have to decide whether to stay in office due to pressure from religious authorities and supporters. Protests and violence between ultra-Orthodox and police have followed court rulings and conscription threats.
Friedman said the ultra-Orthodox “understand that they don’t have a better political alternative, but at same time their public is saying ‘why did we vote for you?’”
Several court rulings have declared the exemptions unreasonable after years of litigation. However, ultra-Orthodox groups have pressured Israeli leaders to stall.
The Israeli Movement for Quality Government, which launched the exemption challenge, urged the government to draft all qualified seminary students immediately. Tomer Naor, the group’s legal department head, said, “This is their legal and moral duty, especially in light of the complex security situation and the urgent need for personnel” in the army.
Two ultra-Orthodox parties boost Netanyahu’s alliance by opposing conscription for their followers. The long-serving Israeli leader has endeavoured to follow court orders while defending his coalition. But with a slender majority of 64 seats in the 120-member parliament, he often has to address smaller parties’ pet issues.
The government could try to restore the exemptions with a statute, but the court’s verdict makes it politically difficult.
As the Knesset prepares for summer break, moderate government members have said they will only accept a measure that enlists large numbers of ultra-Orthodox. This could require the military to draft religious folks before a new law is passed.
In 2022, a previous government proposed limiting ultra-Orthodox conscription. Netanyahu has promoted it.
Critics say the bill was written before the war and doesn’t address a manpower shortage as the army maintains its forces in Gaza and prepares for war with Hezbollah, which has been fighting Israel since last October.
Source : abcnews
