New coalition trouble? Haredi UTJ party says it won’t vote with gov’t without new IDF draft law

The simmering tensions over a new law regulating the draft into the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) for ultra-Orthodox men once again threaten the stability of the government, as a new bill is about to be drafted.

The Chairman of the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee and senior Likud member, Yuli Edelstein, said the committee would soon begin drafting a new bill proposal.

However, the ultra-Orthodox United Torah Judaism (UTJ) Party announced the same day that, due to the delays surrounding the law, it considers itself released from any commitments it made to the governing coalition, in effect threatening to vote against the coalition until a new law was legislated.

However, the party stressed it would not break up the coalition and trigger new elections.

Edelstein’s comments came during a discussion over the question of how to sanction draft dodgers.

Despite the High Court decision to end the exemptions for Haredi men, and the ensuing recruitment drive by the army, only a minuscule proportion actually enlisted in the IDF.

“18,915 draft orders were issued, of which 232 actually enlisted, including 57 to combat roles,” Lt.-Col. Avigdor Dickstein, head of the ultra-Orthodox Affairs Unit within the IDF Personnel Directorate, stated.

Currently, the number of Haredi recruits in 2025 stands at 1,721, Dickstein said. “We are not meeting the goal of recruiting 4,800 Haredim per year,” he added.

While Haredi politicians are pushing for a law that would re-enshrine broad exemptions, particularly for full-time religious students, Edelstein is among the leading voices in the coalition pushing for an effective law that would substantially increase the number of recruits and meet the IDF’s needs.

The bill for a new IDF draft law has been stuck in the committee for months, due to Edelstein’s insisting that he would only agree to “a real conscription law that will significantly increase the IDF’s conscription base.”

The Haredi parties, in turn, have threatened to blow up the government coalition numerous times but, so far, have not made good on the threat.

Edelstein received support from Aliyah Minister Ofir Sofer, who vowed to oppose a potential draft law unless there was a “dramatic change in the approach of the Haredi leadership.”

“I will only support a law that will result in maximum mobilization, as the IDF and security forces require at this time… We must bring a law that will change reality, a historic law – one that will encourage broad mobilization of ultra-Orthodox society, while preserving its way of life.”

In his presentation, Dickstein said that 340 draft candidates were detained at Ben Gurion Airport this year, of which about 100 people were prevented from leaving the country – 50% of them being ultra-Orthodox.

“The army is making very big changes for the Haredi public – they are doing a lot so that they can enlist and preserve their Haredi identity,” Dickstein said.

Edelstein’s insistence on an effective law has ruffled some feathers within the coalition.

According to a leaked recording published on the ultra-Orthodox outlet Behadrei Haredim, Nevo Katz, the advisor to Netanyahu responsible for ties to the Haredi parties, vowed the law would pass with or without Edelstein.

“There is a lot of pressure on him from the national-religious public, which says, ‘What is this, the Haredim need to enlist, yada yada.’ Every two days he goes to the media and says a sentence we need to interpret to understand what he meant,” Katz reportedly said.

Edelstein’s spokesman responded that “The only pressure we have is from the reservists and the families of the fighters and reservists.”

“To avoid misunderstandings and save interpretations: The only recruitment law that will be promoted in the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee is a real, correct, and effective law,” he added.

“One that recruits Haredim into the army and reduces the burden on those serving. One that will expand the recruitment base for the IDF. There is no other scenario.”