Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is continuing efforts to speed up legislation that would expand draft exemptions for Haredi men, despite having canceled a planned statement on the issue Tuesday under pressure from ultra-Orthodox parties, which warned it would “inflame tensions” among opponents of the bill. Seeking clarity on the legislative timetable, Netanyahu sent Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee chair Boaz Bismuth to meet with coalition chair Ofir Katz, Knesset legal adviser Sagit Afik and the committee’s legal adviser Miri Frenkel-Shor.
At the meeting, legal officials made clear that a fixed timetable for passing the bill cannot be imposed and that proper legislative procedure must be maintained. As part of the push to accelerate the process, the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee will hold three discussions next week to prepare the draft exemption bill for its second and third readings.
1 View gallery
Legislative blitz - less room for public outcry
(Photo: Yair Sagi, Reuven Castro, Amit Shaavi, AFP, Alex Kolomoisky, Yoav Dudkevich, AP)
Senior figures in the Haredi parties questioned the prime minister’s canceled statement, saying: “What’s the logic if everything is already being handled in the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee?” They argued that any statement from Netanyahu would only further inflame tensions and generate negative media coverage of the Haredi community. Although Netanyahu is under pressure from Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and his allies, the officials said, “it makes no sense to pay the price at the Haredim’s expense.”
On Tuesday, shortly after Netanyahu’s office announced the planned statement, Shas chairman Aryeh Deri expressed concern and urged Netanyahu’s team to cancel it, warning it would heighten public anger over the bill. Shas and United Torah Judaism are pressing for the legislation to advance as quickly as possible to avoid a prolonged public backlash. Deri argued the statement could have had the opposite effect, increasing pressure from opponents of the bill within Likud and Religious Zionism.
Until now, Netanyahu has avoided direct involvement in the political crisis triggered by the proposed draft law, both inside the right-wing bloc and within his own party. But he has delivered a clear message to all officials working on the bill and to his inner circle: “Move the legislation forward without delay.” On Tuesday, he was expected to address the issue publicly for the first time, but seven minutes before he was due to speak, he canceled.
Bismuth’s message: ‘Put them all in prison? I won’t allow it’
Meanwhile, Bismuth, the sponsor of the bill, told the Haredi weekly Mishpacha that “you can’t force people to enlist in the army.” Asked about jailing draft evaders, he said: “What, put them all in prison? Nonsense. I’m someone who loves and respects the Haredim — I will not let things reach that point.”
His remarks prompted the activist group Mothers at the Front to call for his immediate dismissal. “We are appalled by the comments of Boaz Bismuth, chair of the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee,” the group said. “He should understand that people absolutely can be required to enlist — that’s called the Security Service Law, and draft evaders go to jail under that law.”
They added that his comments “demonstrate what we have been shouting for three years — the discrimination is institutional, treating some blood as worth more than others. Bismuth, now that you’ve revealed your true views, you cannot represent us or the soldiers and reservists. Either retract your comments and correct course, or resign.”