TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — Israel’s parliament has approved laws that effectively halt the enlistment of ultra-Orthodox men in the country’s military in a last-ditch effort by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s ruling coalition to woo religious political parties ahead of elections in the fall.
Lawmakers voted in a marathon session on Monday and Tuesday to both freeze the arrests of ultra-Orthodox draft evaders and to enshrine Jewish religious studies as a “foundational value” of the state.
Both laws represent significant concessions by Netanyahu’s Likud party to ultra-Orthodox politicians seeking to formalize their community’s de facto exemption from serving in the military, which is compulsory for most Jewish men and women in Israel.
The military is already grappling with troop shortages and many Israelis have grown tired of the longstanding system that allowed ultra-Orthodox men to avoid service. Each year, roughly 13,000 ultra-Orthodox men reach the conscription age of 18, but less than 10% enlist, according to a parliamentary committee.
The laws come in the wake of nearly three years of wars — from Gaza to Lebanon and Iran — and ahead of the Knesset’s break for the summer recess. It will return just days before the next parliament elections on Oct. 27, a vote that will also be a referendum on Netanyahu’s wartime leadership.
The prime minister, who has served more terms than any other premier in Israel’s history, is courting the support of the ultra-Orthodox, also known as Haredim, in the upcoming polls.
“Netanyahu is trying to ensure that Haredim are going to negotiate only with him after the next elections,” said Shlomit Ravitsky Tur-Paz, head of the religious and state program at the Israel Democracy Institute think tank.
But Netanyahu faces stiff opposition, including from within hi …