Two weeks after the Chareidi draft law fell in the Knesset, Prime Minister Naftali Bennett’s coalition succeeded in securing a majority to vote for the approval of Avigdor Lieberman’s Chareidi draft law. The bill passed in its first reading with a vote of 51-48.
The Chareidi MKs are ardently opposed to the bill as it imposes penalties and fines on yeshivos if they don’t meet annual recruitment targets, which are set to increase incrementally over the years, to the point of a drastic reduction in yeshiva budgets.
The bill failed two weeks ago after Meretz MK Ghaida Rinawite Zoabi voted against the bill and one Ra’am MK, Mazen Ghanim, absented himself from the plenum. This time, Zoabi voted in favor of the bill, with her explanation hinting at another capitulation by Bennett’s government. “After I reached understandings with the coalition regarding the problems of the Bedouins in the Negev regarding land, unrecognizing housing and settlements, and the establishment of a comprehensive plan for the development of Bedouin villages in the Negev, and of course after the government has committed not use the Chareidi draft law for the ratification of a similar law for the Arab sector or any law connected to it that will affect the Arab sector, I voted today for the Chareidi recruitment law.”
UTJ MK Uri Maklev decried the government for ‘turning lomdei Torah into criminals,” adding that “the truth is known, there’s absolutely no need for the Chareidim in the army. The IDF already has thousands of soldiers who aren’t needed. And the most absurd thing is that the ones making the decision that lomdei Torah will be criminals are Arab MKs.”
UTJ MK Yaakov Asher mocked the coalition’s efforts to convince their Arab members to support the bill. “Bennett convened an urgent meeting with [Ra’am chairman Mansour] Abbas, and [Ra’am MKs] Zoabi and Taha, and the IDF Chief of Staff and the head of the IDF’s Manpower Directorate came to convince them that after the coalition passed the Electricity Law and promised to rebuild [Arab village] Khan al Ahmar, they are in dire need of extra IDF soldiers, whom they adamantly oppose,” he said cynically.
Prior to the vote, UTJ chairman Moshe Gafni excoriated the coalition from the Knesset plenum, saying: “This is one of the most despicable laws of the Am Yehudi. . Are you not ashamed to preach morality to us? How are you not ashamed?! It’s a disgrace!”
A tumult ensued in the Knesset plenum after the vote, when Gafni, who was sitting right behind Bennett, screamed at him: ‘Shame on you!” Bennett reacted with a “thumbs up” gesture.
United Arab List chairman Ahmad Tibi said: “We and the Chareidim don’t agree on political matters, there’s even an abyss. But, over the years, we’ve maintained an unwritten understanding about the most sensitive issue, that we don’t oppose matters related to their religion and they don’t oppose our issues related to religion. And therefore it’s forbidden for Arab MKs to vote for the recruitment law.”
“Secondly, when [the Chareidim] will be back in power, and it’s probable that the government will change in a few months, the right-wing bloc is ready to take action. There have already been several petitions to the Supreme Court by private bodies and organizations which demanded the recruitment of Arabs. [In the past] we responded that they didn’t recruit the Chareidim,” he ominously concluded.
(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)
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26 Responses
Shmad. Yiddin in Amerika should pull resources to ensure any Yid who doesn’t want to be passed to kofrim will have the option to study in Amerika. Otherwise, seriously, what justifies you?
Not everyone is cut out for a lifetime of study and there is nothing wrong with contributing your time and strength to the protection of your home country.
But they won’t draft the Arabs.
typically Bennet the rascha and Liebermann the destroyer of judaism and a big eater.
This should be called a jewish Land? Now i can understand why even non Jewish agree to that
It’s so funny, that the Chareidy Yeshivos want huge amount of money from the Gov’t, but yet do not want to participate in defending Eretz Yisroel.
The presence of thousands of those learning Torah is the protection, ader. The Govt that tries to attack and destroy the learning will fall בעזרת השם.
@ader: yes they DO defend Eretz Yisroel! With all IDF might, the Arabs would have it easy to destroy the country or at least kill tens of thousands civillians cholliloh – the ONLY thing that defends them; is the Torah learning in the Yeshivas and Kollelim!
To Rats Rats DemocRats: Why would you want to draft Arab Israelis into the IDF? It would be a big opening for espionage, sabotage and camoflage by Israel’s enemies.
Gamm Zu LeTova. Everything is for the good.
@ader Learning IS the protection.
LOMDAI TORA ARE THE ONLY ONES DEFENDING EREZ YISROEL.
Could charedim make an ernest offer of cooperation that the rest of Israel could accept?
for example – organize their own units with desired tzniyut, provide medical support, provide chesed, classes for soldiers, send people to study disciplines useful for the army – medical, software, signal intelligence?
AN ARMY THAT DEPENDS ON RECRUITING PEOPLE WHO DON’T WANT TO BE SOLDIERS HAS ALREADY LOST THE NEXT WAR.
What’s unbelievably funny (read sad) are the comments on YESHIVA world. Are you even frum?
Do you value Torah learning at all?
Apparently not
i recall the chareidim having a pact with the Arabs, clearly the Arabs went and stabbed the chareidim in the back, it says in our seforim that Arabs live by sheker maybe the Zionist Gafni learned the hard way.
@ader The chareidim defend the country more by sitting in Yeshiva than by fighting. Basic Knowledge
So they don’t mind getting welfare, but they DO mind surfing the country that gives them that welfare!?!?
A Country does not give you money you could sometimes get back what they stole (taxed) you. a person does not owe appreciation to a country for giving them money, since it NEVER comes from the politicians own bank account.
@Always Ask Questions – there is such a program: sherut leumi. But not that many are prepared to do even that. And I agree with Kach & Huju.
As should be obvious to all, this “draft” law is not about drafting Yeshiva bochurim, it’s only about not giving Yeshivos money. So that means that the rbsh”a, who never wanted Yeshivos to be funded by atheists, has “engineered” things to where they should be, as the Brisker Rav, the Chazon Ish, and the Satmar Rov zichronum l’vracha wanted it and established it back in the 50’s and 60’s. No doubt there will be Yeshivos that will try not to lose their funding and supply bochurim for the Reshaim, but let’s be honest, this draft is ultimately good, since it hopefully will minimize funding for Torah from the secular Zionists.
several people, some in CAPS> The chareidim defend the country more by sitting in Yeshiva than by fighting.
Would Issahar/Zevulun arrangement be a good analogy? It is a volunteer agreement and both get the sechar. In this case, a learning person insists that he is contributing Torah learning that is not appreciated by the other side, and does not even share the sechar by denigrating the forced partner. This is bizayon of Torah. How about stealing someone’s table and saying you need it for the yeshiva that is used as protection?
What if we do this an our own as a true Issahar/Zevulun: two haredi students agree that one serves/works double while the other one is learning? Maybe when others hear about it, they’ll want to join?
First of all without yeshivas there is no future for Israel to remain a jewish state. To those who say that chareidim are just taking money from the government,what about the Arabs. They all take money from the government and keep up their terrorism. Chareidim have plenty of volunteer groups from zaka to helping the survivors of terror attacks. The Israeli army is not our values. They allow gays,trans,and women. If you join the army you as an Orthodox Jew are forced to listen to female singers. If the prime minister was Rabbi Chaim Kanefsky then we would go to the army and not be treated like Garabage by today’s fat cat secular politicians who tie the hands of soldiers and don’t allow them to properly defend themselves. If we were in charge any Arab throwing a rock would get a bullet in the head. Period. No religious Jew should join this anti Torah army. Bring your grandkids living in Israel back to America when they turn 15. If you wait till 18 they won’t be able to leave. As far as the Arabs being in the army as they don’t trust them, we can use it in the leftist media how the fat cat politicians discriminate. Let the arabs be forced to do certain construction work several hours a week if they want to maintain their jobs. The truth is we chareidim are a lot wiser than the secularists. We would bring in a million or two Chinese to do the work in hospitals,construction,restaurants and nursing homes. They don’t hate Jews. We did it in Boro park and we can do it in Israel. We are waiting till we will be a majority.
Torah study is sherut leumi.
Why drafting Arabs? Have seen the murder rate in Arab society in Israel? Now you wanna give them ” more” weapons???
I agree if the Charedi want money for their Yeshivot than go to the army and defend “your country”……. other option leave “your country” to a place where you and your kids don’t need to go to army.
If Torah study defends, why did so many Torah students get killed in the Holocaust.
@Rats Rats DemocRATs I quake for an Israel with a Chareidi minority.