Israel|Older ultra-Orthodox Jews have previously been exempted from military service, which in Israel applies to all genders.
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Israel’s Supreme Court ruled that ultra-Orthodox Jewish men must serve in the army.
The group has previously been exempted from military service with a special agreement, which however expired last summer.
The historic decision could destabilize Netanyahu’s governing coalition.
The background of the decision is influenced by Israel’s war in Gaza.
of Israel the Supreme Court made a historic decision on Tuesday, when it ruled that ultra-orthodox Jewish men must serve in the army in the future.
The decision may sway the prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu government coalition, evaluated for example by news agencies Reuters and AFP and a web magazine The Times of Israel.
Ultra-Orthodox Jews follow a strict interpretation of Judaism. Their share of Israel’s population of ten million is about 13 percent.
in Israel military service is compulsory and applies to all genders. However, old ultra-orthodox or haredi Jews have historically been exempted from military service by special agreement.
The agreement expired last summer, but the government immediately issued a decision prohibiting the armed forces from conscripting ultra-Orthodox Jews for the next ten months. During that time, the government was supposed to approve a new law that would restore the group’s special rights.
Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, and no new law has been approved since then.
Tuesday Israel’s Supreme Court unanimously decided that since the agreement exempting them from military service is no longer valid, ultra-Orthodox men must serve in the army like other Israeli citizens.
The court also ruled that the government overstepped its authority with last summer’s decision to postpone the invitations of ultra-Orthodox Jews. The court found it illegal.
Female ultra-Orthodox Jews are still not affected by the decision on military service.
Israel is waging a war in Gaza against the extremist organization Hamas and possibly preparing for a war on the Lebanese front against another extremist organization Hezbollah.
of Israel Minister of Justice Gil Limon instructed the Israeli armed forces on Tuesday to “immediately” call up 3,000 students from Orthodox Jewish yeshiva schools for military service starting July 1, says The Times of Israel.
In the coming years, according to Limon, the number should be gradually increased “in light of the current needs of the army and to promote the equality of conscription”.
According to the court, there is a significant number of young Orthodox Jewish men exempted from military service, around 63,000.
In addition, the court ordered that the state must stop funding Orthodox Jewish yeshiva schools whose students avoid military service.
Decision could destabilize Netanyahu’s ruling coalition, which is divided over the issue. The coalition includes two ultra-Orthodox parties that oppose conscription for yeshiva students.
If the ultra-orthodox parties end up resigning from Netanyahu’s government, Netanyahu will lose his parliamentary majority in the Knesset, the Israeli parliament.
Last Thursday, the Israeli police arrested an ultra-orthodox Jew who was protesting in the city of Bnei Brak, Israel. Ultra-Orthodox Jews protested the military service decision, which had just been planned by the court at the time.
Ultra-Orthodox protested the court’s military service decision last Thursday by blocking a road in the city of Bnei Brak, Israel. Protesters accused the decision of being anti-Semitic.
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