From the Liveblog of
Tuesday, July 28, 2026
High Court begins hearing over law barring police, IDF from arresting haredi draft dodgers
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on GoogleJeremy Sharon is The Times of Israel’s legal affairs and settlements reporter
The High Court of Justice begins a hearing over petitions asking that it strike down a law passed by the coalition earlier this month banning the police and IDF from arresting ultra-Orthodox draft dodgers, for what is in practice a seven-month period.
A nine-judge panel is hearing the case headed by Supreme Court Deputy President Noam Sohlberg, who has written sharp criticisms against the government in rulings on the issue over the last two years.
The government is boycotting the hearing and will not be represented.
Less than 24 hours after the law was passed in the Knesset, the High Court issued a temporary order freezing its implementation, noting even at that early stage its concerns that the law is discriminatory, since Haredi draft dodgers would not be liable to arrest while draft dodgers from the rest of the general public would.
On Friday, Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara urged the High Court to strike down the legislation, calling it “an extreme and clear case of flawed and harmful legislation that does not meet legal standards.”
She added further that it created “a selective and discriminatory criminal enforcement regime, which is diametrically opposed to the fundamental constitutional principle of equality before the law.”
Some 72,000 ultra-Orthodox men aged 18 to 24 are currently eligible for military service, but have ignored conscription orders. The IDF has said repeatedly in recent months that it urgently needs 12,000 new recruits amid the ongoing multifront conflict.
The judges hearing the petitions today are Deputy President Sohlberg and justices Daphne Barak-Erez, David Mintz, Yael Willner, Ofer Grosskopf, Alex Stein, Gila Canfy Steinitz, Yechiel Kasher and Ruth Ronnen.
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