Leaders of the haredi (ultra-Orthodox) parties, Shas and United Torah Judaism, visited arrested haredi draft evaders held in military prison on Sunday, expressing support for them and calling for their release – even amid the IDF’s severe manpower shortage.
Shas Party leader Aryeh Deri vowed during the visit that legislation would soon be passed that seeks to set Torah study as a Basic Law, in a highly controversial move that would further encourage draft exemptions for haredi men.
Other lawmakers from his party, including MK Michael Malkieli and Haim Biton, accompanied Deri on the visit to the Neve Tzedek Military Prison.
Shas noted that Deri met with numerous draft evaders during the trip and handed out books to them. Shas stated that Deri “sought to encourage the detainees and emphasized that the entire Shas movement stands behind them, supports them, and is working with all its strength to secure their swift release and the regulation of their status.”
Deri also slammed Attorney-General Gali Baharav-Miara, claiming outside the prison that she was “sabotaging” legislation aiding draft evaders.
UTJ leader MK Yitzhak Goldknopf made his own separate trip to the prison, where he was filmed saying that it “was difficult for him to see” the condition of the draft evaders.
IDF could collapse without manpower shortage solution
Haredi party leaders have continuously pushed for Netanyahu’s coalition to advance legislation that would not increase haredi enlistment. The IDF has repeatedly warned of an urgent manpower shortage, particularly after more than two years of war.
In March, IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Eyal Zamir said the IDF could soon collapse if there is no solution to the manpower shortage.
The move to add Torah study to a Basic Law is expected to be brought to the Ministerial Committee for Legislation for a government greenlight on Tuesday, after the meeting that was scheduled to be convened on the topic on Sunday was canceled.
Chairman of the haredi Degel HaTorah faction, MK Moshe Gafni, criticized the cancellation of the ministerial meeting, saying he “demanded that it be convened as soon as possible.”
Gafni called for the legislation to be brought for a vote in the Knesset plenum in a preliminary reading as early as Wednesday.
Torah study incorporation into Basic Law part of deal ahead of Knesset dissolution
The rapid advancement of the legislation that aims to include Torah study into the Basic Law is also reportedly part of an emerging deal between Netanyahu and the haredi parties, ahead of the upcoming Knesset dissolution vote in its second and third readings.
The agreement between Netanyahu and the parties is to push the election date to October 20, rather than hold it in September, as the haredi parties have sought. In return, they would receive advancement on the Basic Law: Torah Study, haredi daycare subsidies law, and the kashrut law, according to a Channel 12 report.
Lawmakers from the haredi parties Shas and UTJ told the Knesset House Committee last week that they wanted to move up the election date to September, before the High Holy Days.
Numerous reports have stated that the haredi parties have pushed for this to lead to a better turnout among their voters.
Reportedly, Netanyahu has opposed the move and instead seeks to hold elections in late October, allowing the coalition more time to advance legislation during the Knesset’s final session and potentially achieve military goals.
MK Dan Illouz, a member of Likud, vowed on Sunday that he would vote against the addition of Torah study to the country’s Basic Law when it is brought forward for its preliminary reading.
“This week, ultra-Orthodox political operatives are trying to bring to a vote a law that seeks to enshrine draft evasion under the guise of ‘Torah study.’ They call it the Basic Law: Torah Study, but it would be more accurate to call it the Basic Law: Desecration of the Torah,” Illouz stated.
“If the bill is brought to a vote, I will vote against it, and I call on anyone who truly loves the Torah to vote against it,” Illouz added.
“Inventing a Judaism in which Torah study exempts a person from defending the lives of his people is not the tradition of Israel. It is a new, detached, and dangerous invention that changes the DNA of Jewish law and of the Jewish people,” he added.
Golan criticizes haredi party leader statements
Democrats party leader Yair Golan sharply criticized the remarks the haredi party leaders made at their visit to the draft evaders.
“While reservists are collapsing under the burden, Deri is supporting draft dodgers. This is not Judaism. This is not Zionism. This is small politics at the expense of those who serve,” he said.
“In the upcoming elections, we will win and ensure an equal conscription law; whoever does not enlist will pay,” Golan added.
General elections must take place no later than October 27.