Likud MK Tally Gotliv said on Wednesday that the government should consider not passing a law that will grant an exemption from IDF service for a large portion of eligible haredim, and instead proceed under the existing law that requires that all haredim be drafted into the IDF.
The IDF would not be able to draft all haredim immediately so the process would be staggered in any case, Gotliv argued.
Religious Zionist Party MK Michal Woldiger said that the committee should pass a law, but that it should be designated as temporary in order to be able to examine its effectiveness.
Gotliv's and Woldiger's comments came after an impassioned speech by Rabbi Yirmi Stavitsky, former principal of Himmelfarb High School in Jerusalem, of which 10 graduates were killed on October 7 or during the ensuing war. Stavitsky's son-in-law was also killed in the war,
Increasing the burden on the IDF
Stavitsky warned that the increasing burden on IDF reservists was not sustainable and would lead to a collapse that would harm national security. Moreover, Stavitsky argued, haredim should have the “right and duty” to serve in the army and become involved citizens.
There was no reason to exempt or even legally define haredim as a separate group, and each haredi individual should be at the very minimum given the opportunity to serve, Stavitsky argued. He added that there should be personal sanctions against those that refuse the draft without receiving a legal exemption.
Lt.-Col. Avigdor Dickstein, head of the Haredi branch in the IDF Personnel Directorate, updated during the meeting that 1,721 haredim began their service since the beginning of the IDF’s annual draft cycle on July 1, 2024. Most of these were draftees who were summoned beforehand; out of 10,000 draft summonses sent out in the first two four-month cycles (ending on February 28), approximately 1,000 responded, out of which 205 have began their service and the rest are still being processed.
Over 1,100 arrest warrants have been issued; over 1,900 haredim who did not respond have received “Tzav 12” orders, which gives the army the authority to draft them on the spot if they are located; and over 850 have officially been declared “draft dodgers”, which is a criminal offense.
The Movement for Quality Government commented that the data presented highlights "a blatant violation of the High Court ruling and a systematic disregard for the law. The current situation, in which only a few conscription orders are sent without significant enforcement, is, in fact, a continuation of the illegal policy of a blanket exemption for the Haredi public."
The organization "demands that the government and the minister of defense stop this duplicity and immediately take concrete steps to implement mandatory conscription, including the application of significant sanctions against those who evade it. The Israeli government must comply with the High Court ruling and issue conscription orders to all 80,000 draft-eligible Haredi youth."