From the Liveblog of
Monday, May 5, 2025
Knesset begins summer session, set to be marked by row over Haredi draft exemptions
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"
Following a monthlong recess for the Passover holiday, Holocaust Remembrance Day, Memorial Day and Independence Day, the Knesset begins its summer legislative session.
The new session is expected to be marked by fierce arguments over ultra-Orthodox military draft exemptions, as tens of thousands of reservists are once again called up for a renewed IDF offensive in the Gaza Strip.
Angered by the government’s failure to pass a bill reestablishing yeshiva students’ exemption from military service, the Haredi United Torah Judaism party has stated that it no longer considers itself bound to vote with the coalition and will pursue an independent course.
Last week, Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee chairman Likud MK Yuli Edelstein asserted that the panel he heads is nearing a final draft of a law regulating ultra-Orthodox enlistment.
The Knesset’s summer session will last until July 27.
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