Israeli law to draft more Charedim into the IDF could trigger an election

Israel’s Supreme Court has given the government three months to implement legislation that would have more Charedi  yeshiva students drafted into the military.

The implementation of a new draft law likely will trigger the fall of the current government and new elections sometime in the first three months of 2019.

Last September, the Supreme Court struck down a law that increased the number of draft exemptions for the Charedi  students. The court gave the government one year to rework the draft for Charedi  men.

The court’s ruling on Tuesday fell well short of the government’s request for a seven-month extension.

In July, a bill setting military enlistment quotas for Charedi  yeshiva students passed its initial reading in the Knesset over threats from Charedi  lawmakers to bring down the government if it becomes law.

The legislation requires that a minimum number of students serve in the military or the government will reduce the annual budget allocation for their yeshivas. The target will increase each year for 10 years.

Deputy Health Minister Yaakov Litzman of the Charedi  United Torah Judaism party said he would resign from the government if the new law were approved.

Secular and non-Charedi  Israelis have long complained that far too many young adults studying in yeshivas are exempt from mandatory army service. Charedi  leaders say army service would corrupt their youth and distract them from their studies.

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