Lapid: Judicial overhaul talks should also include draft exemption for Haredim

Opposition leader MK Yair Lapid says talks on legislation granting ultra-Orthodox exemption from military service should be folded into ongoing negotiations at the President’s Residence over the government’s effort to overhaul the judiciary.

Speaking at the start of his Yesh Atid faction’s weekly meeting in the Knesset, Lapid says the topic must be negotiated on to prevent a further rift in Israeli society.

His remarks come after representatives from Yesh Atid and fellow opposition party National Unity reportedly raised the matter during negotiations with coalition representatives the day before.

Coalition officials rejected the idea yesterday, claiming there was no time to include the subject in the talks, Haaretz reports. The two sides are holding talks at President Isaac Herzog’s official residence in an effort to reach an agreement on the planned judicial changes that have sparked mass protests for months with critics warning the overhaul will remove checks and balances to parliament’s power, degrading Israel’s democratic character.

At the beginning of the week, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held a meeting with some of his coalition partners to discuss potential new legislation on the military draft, weighing lowering the age at which members of the ultra-Orthodox community can continue to get a formal exemption from service.

“I suggest to the government – and especially to the ultra-Orthodox parties: Hold a dialogue on the conscription law,” Lapid says. “Sit down together, talk about it at the president’s house, at least try to see if it is possible to reach an agreed outline that will not lead us to an even bigger rift.”