Gallant says IDF will start drafting ultra-Orthodox men next month

Defense Minster Yoav Gallant says the military will begin to draft ultra-Orthodox Israeli men starting next month.

Gallant held an assessment on the matter with IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi and other officials this morning, his office says.

Following the meeting, Gallant “approved the IDF’s recommendation to issue [draft] orders” to members of the Haredi community next month, “in accordance with the [IDF’s] absorption and screening capabilities, and after a significant process of refining the existing data regarding possible recruits is carried out,” the statement says.

Gallant and Halevi say in the meeting that drafting ultra-Orthodox Israelis into the army is a “operational necessity and a complex social issue,” which requires allowing Haredi soldiers to “maintain their lifestyle,” according to the ministry.