Israel is a nation at war. From Gaza and Lebanon to the West Bank and Iran, the Israel Defense Forces are stretched thin. Yet tens of thousands of able-bodied Haredi men remain exempt from military or national service — not for reasons of health or conscience, but because of political deals and coalition bargaining. That is indefensible.
The long-standing exemption for Haredi yeshiva students is a national disgrace. It violates the principle that citizenship entails obligation. No democracy can sustain a system in which one sector claims full access to state support while refusing to share the risks and burdens borne by the rest of society.
Israel’s High Court of Justice made this point emphatically last year when it ordered the state to begin drafting Haredi men. The legal framework for blanket exemption has collapsed. Yet instead of swift legislative action, the government has resorted — once again — to delays, appeasement and horse trading.
Last week’s overnight Knesset vote to block early elections was less about election timing and more about protecting the fragile governing coalition from collapse under Haredi pressure. The cost? More time for United Torah Judaism and Shas to gut the draft legislation that would bring their communities into the national fold.
The current version of the bill proposes modest targets for Haredi enlistment — rising to 50% over five years — and outlines penalties for evasion. But the sanctions are riddled with delays and exemptions. Loss of benefits, travel restrictions and license suspensions would come only after long grace periods. Welfare payments and housing subsidies would continue well into the future for those who flout the law.
Even this watered-down proposal is too much for the Haredi parties, who are threatening to bring down the government rather than agree to a meaningful increase in service. Their position is not only unreasonable — it is unjust. They demand full public funding for their institutions and families but refuse to accept that public support comes with civic duty. That is a betrayal of both the state and the ideal of mutual responsibility.
This is not a battle against Torah study. Jewish tradition has always honored learning, and there must be room for top scholars to dedicate themselves to full-time study. But mass exemption is unsustainable — especially for the thousands of able-bodied young men who wander the streets and only occasionally visit their study halls. A just and workable compromise would allow limited deferrals for elite students, while requiring the majority of Haredi men to serve — either in uniform or in structured national civilian service.
The current imbalance is intolerable. Reservists and regular draftees are risking their lives, while thousands are allowed to opt out without consequence. The burden is not equally shared, even as the nation is at war and the resentment is growing.
The Knesset must help support the brave and weary warriors of the Israel Defense Forces and pass a law that imposes immediate, enforceable penalties on individuals and institutions that refuse to comply. Subsidies should be cut without delay. Benefits should be tied to service. And coalition blackmail must no longer dictate national policy.
There is no religious commandment that excuses civic evasion. Israel cannot afford two classes of citizenship — one that serves and sacrifices, and one that is shielded from both.
The time for excuses is over. The time for shared responsibility is now.
