Hanegbi slams draft exemption bill, says it ‘enables evasion’ and endangers Israel

Former national security adviser Tzachi Hanegbi sharply criticizes the government’s proposed draft exemption bill, warning that it “enables evasion” and threatens Israel’s future.

In a Facebook post, Hanegbi — who was abruptly removed from his post last month by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu amid reported disagreements over Gaza war policy — says the current proposal “does not advance” the IDF’s urgent need for thousands of additional combat soldiers following the war.

Hanegbi writes that the military burden “still falls on the shoulders of a relatively small few,” noting that all four of his sons served in combat roles, with three fighting in Gaza in recent years. He argues that while Torah study is a cherished value, “it must be combined with the value of defending the state and its citizens.”

The longtime Likud minister adds that his experience in the cabinet, the Knesset’s Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee and the National Security Council convinced him that the IDF “knows how to successfully integrate” military service with religious commitments. He calls on the government and Knesset to “ensure this without further delay.”