United Torah Judaism

Haredi draft dilemma: Religious exemption from IDF will bring down the government

With a majority of Israelis calling for public change, haredi exemption from the IDF is no longer just a legal debate, but a question of Israel’s survival.

 Ultra-Orthodox Jews clash with police during a protest against the drafting of ultra orthodox jews to the Israeli army, on road 4 near Bnei Brak, June 5, 2025.
 A haredi (ultra-Orthodox) Jewish man holds a placard next to a police horse as he takes part in a protest against pressure to conscript into the military in Bnei Brak, Israel, June 5, 2025. The words in Hebrew read "We will not enlist in the enemy army."

Much ado about nothing: Coalition remains standing as core issues remain unsolved - analysis

 Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Construction and Housing Minister Yitzhak Goldknopf seen in Jerusalem, September 27, 2023

Ultra-Orthodox minister resigns from Israeli gov't over IDF draft law debacle

 Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu seen outside his office at the Knesset, Israel's parliament in Jerusalem on June 11, 2025.

Opposition's Knesset dispersal bill fails after Edelstein, haredim reach draft bill agreement


Haredi minister pushing for bill to disperse Knesset, take Israel to elections

According to Israeli law, if a bill to disperse the Knesset passes, an election is automatically called and must occur within 90 days.

 Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Construction and Housing Minister Yitzhak Goldknopf seen in Jerusalem, September 27, 2023

Haredi parties' Knesset boycott to continue for third straight week

This could change pending an assessment by haredi MKs later this week, according to one of the spokespersons.

 Haredi men are seen protesting the effort to draft ultra-Orthodox Israelis into the IDF.

How real is the haredi threat to topple the government? - analysis

Despite the growing calls, even within the coalition, for eligible haredi men to join the IDF, the reality on the ground has not changed very much.

 Anti-draft protests erupt in Jerusalem, May, 2025.

Haredi faction holds emergency talks as Israel’s 2025 budget deadline looms

Haredi faction Degel Hatorah's vote on the 2025 budget remains uncertain amid coalition strife.

 United Torah Judaism (UTJ) chairman rabbi Yitzchak Goldknopf is seen at the Supreme Court in Jerusalem, July 28, 2022

Government approved 2025 ‘coalition funds’ amidst criticism

Coalition funds are a part of the national budget aimed at enabling the implementation of political agreements.

 Finance Minister and Head of the Religious Zionist Party Bezalel Smotrich leads a faction meeting at the Knesset, the Israeli parliament in Jerusalem, February 3, 2025.

UTJ leaders refuse Netanyahu request to delay haredi draft bill

While preparation of the haredi draft bill sped up in the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee in recent weeks, it is still unlikely to pass into law by March 3.

 Police officers in Bnei Brak, Israel use water cannons as haredi Orthodox Jewish men block a main highway to protest efforts to allow the state to draft Haredi yeshiva students into military service, June 2, 2024.

MKs threatened bill to disperse Knesset over IDF exemption, major haredi paper reaveals

There is a growing sense of urgency, but the "feeling" in the party is that at the moment there is no concrete proposal on the table to disperse the Knesset.

 Housing Minister Yitzhak Goldknopf, leader of United Torah Judaism, arrives for a cabinet meeting together with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Netanyahu orders removal of haredi daycare bill from Knesset plenum agenda

United Torah Judaism, the party pushing the bill, reportedly said later on Tuesday that it was insisting that the bill remain on the agenda.

 ‘THE HAREDI leadership argues that it is forbidden to draft yeshiva students whose Torah is their profession and that they defend the State of Israel through their studies.’

Coalition, opposition spar as preliminary vote on haredi daycare bill nears

United Torah Judaism threatens to oppose other coalition bills if daycare bill falls

 HAREDI JEWS walk in the streets of the ultra-Orthodox neighborhood of Mea Shearim, in Jerusalem, earlier this month.

On Simchat Torah, we dance because we refuse to let the darkness win - opinion

How can we dance again? It’s not just a question for Simchat Torah; it’s a question for every moment we face after loss, after tragedy, after the world splits wide open.

 An illustrative image of Jews celebrating with Torah scrolls on Simchat Torah.

UTJ member: Leftist kibbutz members are responsible for October 7, should not come to memorial

In the article Menachem Klugman directly blamed the kibbutz members for failing to prevent October 7.

 Charred building in Kibbutz Nir Oz