From Bennett accuses Smotrich’s party of ‘betraying’ Zionism and Judaism by backing Haredi draft law
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on GoogleSam Sokol is a former political correspondent at The Times of Israel. He was previously a reporter for the Jerusalem Post, Jewish Telegraphic Agency and Haaretz. He is the author of "Putin’s Hybrid War and the Jews"
Former prime minister Naftali Bennett accuses Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich’s Religious Zionism party of betraying Jewish and Zionist values, following media reports that the far-right faction will support the coalition’s controversial ultra-Orthodox military draft exemption law.
“This is a full-blown evasion law in disguise. The leaders of the ‘Religious Zionism’ party are betraying both the values of Zionism and the values of Judaism, and are tearing apart the people of Israel and the IDF,” tweets Bennett, who has already begun campaigning ahead of next year’s Knesset election.
“Soon we will repeal this anti-Zionist law and reunite Israel,” he declares.
Despite strong opposition within Religious Zionism, Smotrich reportedly decided to support the bill following an extended meeting with his party’s rabbis.
If passed into law, the bill would effectively reset the status of Haredi yeshiva students who ignored call-up orders over the past year, while yeshivas would immediately receive half of their pre-ruling funding, easing economic and legal pressure on the community.
The proposed legislation stipulates that full-time yeshiva students who do not engage in any other vocation can be granted yearly deferments from enlistment, but it removed various provisions from a previous version that were intended to ensure that those registered for yeshiva study are actually doing so.
The Times of Israel Community.