Ultra-Orthodox party to demand concessions on draft law

After winning six seats in Tuesday’s elections, the ultra-Orthodox party United Torah Judaism vowed to modify a controversial draft bill, with analysts speculating that the party will predicate its entry into a coalition government on the issue.

The party is expected to demand amendments to the law — passed in March 2014 — that seeks to formalize ultra-Orthodox enlistment in the IDF.

UTJ officials also hailed the “downfall” of their main rivals in the elections — Yair Lapid (Yesh Atid), Avigdor Liberman (Yisrael Beytenu) and Naftali Bennett (Jewish Home) — whose parties have all sparred with the Haredi party over key issues such as the ultra-Orthodox draft, government subsidies and grants to the Haredi community, and the nature of its education system.

“Liberman, who was responsible for many things, fell. The Jewish Home, which also didn’t like us, and did not cooperate with us from the get-go, was also dealt a blow, and Lapid, who was finance minister and responsible for the draft law and all the decrees, also fell, which shows that the way of the wicked does not succeed,” party No. 2 Moshe Gafni said.

UTJ party chief Yaakov Litzman told the ultra-Orthodox news site Kikar HaShabat that he would demand concessions on the draft law, but did not specify exactly which aspects he would seek to modify, or if he would try to do away with the legislation altogether.

Under the bill, Haredi men between the ages of 18 and 24 would be able to claim draft exemptions from national service, one year at a time. Draft quotas would be determined by the number of eligible ultra-Orthodox men under the age of 24.

Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.