UTJ organ declares no compromise on IDF enlistment quotas, sanctions

Ultra-Orthodox newspaper Hamodia, seen as a mouthpiece for the Agudat Yisrael faction of the United Torah Judaism party, publishes an editorial rejecting any possible compromise on efforts to draft members of the community into the military, as ultra-Orthodox politicians demand the passage of legislation enshrining exemptions for yeshiva students into law.

“There will be no quotas or targets, neither 50 percent nor 2%,” reads the editorial, referring to efforts to negotiate rules that will set enlistment quotas and punishments against draft dodgers. “There will be no sanctions, and all discussions on the matter are irrelevant.”

The editorial comes a day after the top rabbinic leadership of the ultra-Orthodox community rejected any conscription legislation containing such enlistment targets during a meeting in the central Israel kibbutz of Ma’ale Hahamisha.

The Ashkenazi United Torah Judaism and Sephardic Shas parties have been pushing hard for the passage of legislation enabling ultra-Orthodox men to continue to avoid military conscription or other national service, in the wake of last year’s High Court of Justice ruling that such exemptions are illegal on equality grounds.

Earlier this month, UTJ quit the coalition after being presented with a copy of a proposed enlistment bill prepared by the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee’s then-chairman, Yuli Edelstein, which reportedly contained quotas and sanctions. Shas also quit the government, but has remained part of the coalition, allowing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to stay in power.

On Wednesday, the IDF announced that it had completed sending out 54,000 draft orders to ultra-Orthodox men who are eligible for military service and have not yet enlisted.