Israeli Supreme Court ruled that on Tuesday ultra-Orthodox men should be drafted into mandatory military service, a major shift that could unravel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government.
For decades, ultra-Orthodox men in Israel have been exempt from laws requiring all Jewish Israelis to perform military service. Critics said the laws discriminated against the rest of the country’s population, who would otherwise be required to serve at least two years of military service, usually starting at age 18.
“Amid a grueling war, the burden of inequality is heavier than ever and demands a solution,” wrote Supreme Court Justice Uzi Vogelman, referring to the country’s war against Hamas in Gaza and a simmering conflict with Hezbollah, which is based in Gaza. Lebanon.
The exemptions for ultra-Orthodox Jews were first abolished in 2017, but the rulings have since been stuck in legal and regulatory limbo, with delays spurred by Netanyahu’s ruling government, which is backed by ultra-Orthodox factions.
Most Israeli Jewish men are generally required to serve in the military for three years, and women for two years, in addition to reserve military service until age 40.
Have the exceptions divided the Israeli public and have become especially controversial since the start of the war between Israel and Hamas last year. More than 600 Israeli soldiers have been killed since Hamas’s attack on October 7, with the army saying it needs all the manpower it can get to defeat the militant group.
Ultra-Orthodox groups argue that their full-time religious work counts toward their contributions to the state.
Change in policy is strongly opposed by ultra-Orthodox political parties, which are a key part of Netanyahu’s coalition. It is possible that the parties could leave the coalition over the exemption change, leading to a collapse of the government and new elections.
Netanyahu’s Likud party denounced the ruling and called on the country’s parliament to pass a law that codifies some exceptions but enforces limited ultra-Orthodox enlistment.
“The real solution to the design problem is not a Supreme Court ruling,” the party said in a statement.
In court filings, government lawyers argued that forcing ultra-Orthodox men to enlist would “tear Israeli society apart.”
Israel’s ultra-Orthodox make up roughly 13 percent of the country’s population of 9.9 million. Each year, about 13,000 ultra-Orthodox men reach the draft age of 18, but fewer than 10 percent sign up, according to the Israeli parliament’s State Audit Committee.
The Movement for Quality Government in Israel, which helped lead the fight against the waivers, called on the government to immediately recall all eligible seminary students.
“This is their legal and moral obligation, especially in light of the complex security situation and urgent need for personnel” in the military, Tomer Naor, head of the group’s legal department, said in a statement. statement to Associated Press.
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