JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel’s Supreme Court ruled unanimously Tuesday that the army must begin drafting ultra-Orthodox men into military service, a decision that could lead to the prime minister’s collapse. Benjamin Netanyahuruling coalition as Israel continues to wage war in Gaza.
The court ruled that in the absence of a law distinguishing between Jewish seminary students and other conscripts, Israel’s system of military conscription applies to ultra-Orthodox like all other citizens.
Under long-standing regulations, ultra-Orthodox men are exempt from military service, which is mandatory for most Jewish men and women. These waivers have long been a source of anger among the secular public, a rift that has widened during the eight-month war as the military has called up tens of thousands of soldiers, saying it needs all the manpower it can get. More than 600 soldiers have been killed.
Politically powerful ultra-Orthodox parties, key partners in Netanyahu’s governing coalition, oppose any change to the current system. If the exemptions are ended, they could abandon the coalition, causing the government to collapse and new elections to follow.
During arguments, government lawyers told the court that forcing ultra-Orthodox men to enlist would “tear Israeli society apart.”
The court’s ruling comes at a sensitive time, as the war in Gaza enters its ninth month and the number of dead soldiers continues to rise.
The court found that the state “conducted invalid selective enforcement, which constitutes a serious violation of the rule of law and of the principle that all individuals are equal before the law.”
It did not say how many ultra-Orthodox should be called up.
The court also ruled that state subsidies for seminaries where exempt ultra-Orthodox men study should remain suspended. The court temporarily froze seminary budgets earlier this year.
In a post on the social media platform He did not say whether his party would leave the government.
“The State of Israel was founded to be a home for the Jewish people whose Torah is the basis of its existence. The Holy Torah will prevail,” he wrote.
The ultra-Orthodox see their full-time religious studies as their contribution to the protection of the State of Israel. Many fear that greater contact with secular society through the military will distance adherents from strict adherence to the faith.
Ultra-Orthodox men attend special seminaries that focus on religious studies, with little attention to secular subjects such as math, English or science. Critics have said they are ill-prepared to serve in the military or enter the secular workforce.
Religious women generally receive blanket exemptions that are not as controversial, in part because women are not expected to serve in combat units.
The ruling now sets the stage for growing friction within the coalition between those who favor a more ultra-Orthodox stance and those who oppose the idea. Ultra-Orthodox lawmakers will likely face intense pressure from religious leaders and their constituents and may have to choose whether it is worth it for them to remain in government.
Shuki Friedman, vice president of the Jewish People Policy Institute, a Jerusalem think tank, said the ultra-Orthodox “understand that they have no better political alternative, but at the same time their audience is saying ‘why did we vote for you.’ ?’”
The exemptions have faced years of legal challenges and a series of court rulings have declared the system unjust. But Israeli leaders have repeatedly stalled under pressure from ultra-Orthodox parties. It remains unclear whether Netanyahu will be able to do this again.
Netanyahu’s coalition is backed by two ultra-Orthodox parties that oppose increased recruitment of their voters. The long-serving Israeli leader has tried to abide by the court’s rulings while also working to preserve his coalition. But with a narrow majority of 64 seats in the 120-member parliament, he often depends on the pet issues of smaller parties.
Netanyahu has promoted a bill introduced by a previous government in 2022 that aimed to address the issue of ultra-Orthodox recruitment.
But critics say the bill was drafted before the war and does not do enough to address pressing manpower shortages as the army tries to maintain its troops in the Gaza Strip while preparing for a possible war with the Lebanese Hezbollah group , who has been fighting with Israel since the war in Gaza broke out last October.
With its high birth rate, the ultra-Orthodox community is the fastest growing segment of the population, at about 4% per year. Each year, about 13,000 ultra-Orthodox men reach the draft age of 18, but fewer than 10% enlist, according to the Israeli parliament’s State Audit Committee.
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AP writer Isaac Scharf in Jerusalem contributed to this story.
