The Knesset plenum approved the Basic Law on Torah Study for its first reading on Wednesday, advancing a key demand of the Haredi parties as part of a political deal with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud that was first revealed by ynet.
The bill seeks to enshrine Torah study as a basic value of the State of Israel. Its political purpose is to strengthen the legal standing of yeshiva students amid the long-running dispute over Haredi enlistment in the IDF, after previous draft exemption arrangements were struck down by the courts on equality grounds.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu came to the plenum from the opening ceremony of the Maccabiah Games after Haredi parties demanded that he personally vote in favor of the bill. His vote was needed to help secure a 61-seat majority, which Haredi lawmakers believe could strengthen the bill’s legal position if petitions are filed with the High Court of Justice.
Likud lawmakers Dan Illouz and Yuli Edelstein voted against the bill, as did National Right MK Sharren Haskel. Labor MK Naama Lazimi was removed from the plenum during the vote.
Before Netanyahu arrived, MK Yitzhak Pindrus of United Torah Judaism began a filibuster. Addressing opposition lawmakers, he said: “The Germans said the same thing about the Jews: ‘They only want money.’” His remarks drew protests from MK Gilad Kariv.
Under the deal reported by ynet, Netanyahu reached understandings with the heads of the Haredi parties to advance several bills tied to their core interests: the Basic Law on Torah Study, legislation aimed at preventing the arrest of Haredi draft dodgers and a bill on kosher supervision.
In return, the Haredi parties are expected to support politically sensitive moves for Netanyahu and the coalition, including advancing a political commission of inquiry into the October 7 attack, splitting the role of the attorney general and reaching understandings over the timing of the next election.
(Photo: Knesset)
The Torah study bill passed a preliminary reading on June 10. The current vote moves it closer to becoming law, though it must still pass further Knesset stages before final approval.
Haredi parties say the bill reflects their view that Torah study is a foundational value in Israel and Jewish society, and should therefore receive constitutional protection. They argue that anchoring Torah study in a Basic Law would give broader legal protection to the yeshiva world and yeshiva students, especially against the background of court rulings that canceled or restricted previous exemption and deferral arrangements for military service.
Supporters say the bill would create balance with other Basic Laws and ensure official recognition of the spiritual contribution of Torah study.
Critics argue that the legislation is an attempt to bypass the principle of equality in military service and protect the exemption of Haredi men from the draft at a time when the IDF is under heavy manpower pressure.
MK Moshe Gafni, chairman of Degel HaTorah, presented the bill in the plenum and said that “in recent years, there has been a degradation in the honor of Torah.”
“This law should have been passed when the state was founded,” Gafni said. “Advancing the law is an existential need in order to restore the honor of Torah to its proper place in the Jewish state.”
Jerusalem Affairs and Jewish Tradition Minister Meir Porush of United Torah Judaism attacked opponents of the bill, especially on the left.
“What do they have to do with Torah?” he said. “As far as they are concerned, a state could have been established in Uganda, a democratic state with no connection to the Jews, and there really would be no reason or logic there to pass a Basic Law on Torah Study. What does Uganda have to do with Torah study?”
(Photo: Jack Guez/AFP)
Porush also addressed coalition lawmakers who intended to vote against the bill, some of them religious Zionists.
“Some of you wear kippahs. What do you have to do with the Land of Israel?” he said. “You, the knitted-kippah wearers, supposedly cherish and refuse to give up even a grain of land here in the Land of Israel because it was promised to us in the Torah. But when it comes to Torah study, you ask us to make do with only a few grains of Torah. We are allowed to ask you for a little soul-searching.”
An earlier version of the bill included language equating the status of Torah students with that of IDF soldiers. That comparison was removed after a public backlash.
The current text states that “the State of Israel, as a Jewish state, sees supreme importance in encouraging Torah study and Torah students, and sees those who have taken upon themselves to devote themselves to Torah study for a long period as contributing a significant contribution to the State of Israel and the Jewish people.”
The bill now moves to the next stage of the legislative process, where it is expected to remain at the center of the broader political fight over Haredi enlistment, the coalition’s survival and the balance between religion, equality and security in Israel.