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Sunday, July 6, 2025
Haredi MKs could boycott Knesset votes until new conscription bill presented
Sam Sokol is the Times of Israel's political correspondent. 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"
The ultra-Orthodox Shas and United Torah Judaism parties are considering boycotting all plenum votes in the Knesset until presented with a new draft of a controversial bill regulating the conscription of yeshiva students.
A Haredi political source told Channel 12 earlier today that ultra-Orthodox lawmakers will not enter the Knesset plenum to vote with the coalition until they see forward movement on the bill, which is being worked on in the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee.
Speaking with The Times of Israel, another Haredi party source with knowledge of the matter says that the parties will make up their minds during tomorrow’s faction meetings.
“We need to wait and see because Yuli Edelstein said he would present [his draft] today, so we’re waiting,” the source adds.
Speaking with Radio Kol Barama last week, United Torah Judaism MK Moshe Roth noted that the Haredi parties were already boycotting private member bills by coalition MKs over delays in advancing the legislation.
Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee chairman Yuli Edelstein is expected to present lawmakers with a revised version of the government’s ultra-Orthodox enlistment bill in the coming days, after the matter was briefly shelved due to the war with Iran.
According to national broadcaster Kan, the legislation will call for conscripting more than 4,800 Haredim in the first year.
An unreleased version of the bill that was being worked on by Edelstein’s committee prior to the Iran war was said to contain a raft of harsh sanctions on Haredi men who flout enlistment orders, including the loss of discounts on property taxes and public transportation, the removal of tax benefits for working women married to draft dodgers, exclusion from the housing lottery, and the cancellation of daycare and academic subsidies.
According to Channel 12, boycotting votes could postpone United Torah Judaism MK Yisrael Eichler’s appointment as housing minister. Eichler is slated to replace Tourism Minister Haim Katz, who took on the office on a temporary basis following the resignation of UTJ chairman Yitzchak Goldknopf.
The Times of Israel Community.