The Knesset voted 56-43 on Wednesday in a preliminary reading to advance a controversial Basic Law declaring Torah study a foundational value of the State of Israel, and effectively equating the study of Torah with military service. The vote passed despite several coalition lawmakers breaking ranks to vote with the opposition against the divisive legislation, causing an uproar in the plenum.

Sponsored by ultra-Orthodox United Torah Judaism lawmakers MKs Moshe Gafni and Yaakov Asher, and backed by the ultra-Orthodox Shas party, the measure would recognize those who dedicate themselves to long-term Torah study as performing “meaningful service” to the state, effectively equating it to army service and conferring upon yeshiva students equal rights to those who serve in the army.

The bill will now be sent to the Knesset House Committee, which will determine which committee will prepare it for its subsequent readings. The coalition hopes to pass the bill before the upcoming national election in the fall.

Senior ultra-Orthodox lawmakers hailed the vote, with United Torah Judaism MK Yisrael Eichler calling it “a declaration of holy war against those who blaspheme God, persecute the Torah and oppose those who study it,” as fellow UTJ MK Meir Porush referred to opponents of the bill as “antisemites” and “enemies of the Torah and its students.”

Both said that Haredi parties were compelled to bring forward the bill due to the “systematic persecution of Torah scholars” by “dictatorial jurists.”

The legislation represents the latest effort by the Haredi parties to preserve draft exemptions for yeshiva students after a coalition-backed enlistment bill promoted by Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee chairman Boaz Bismuth was effectively shelved last month, amid an impasse between the ultra-Orthodox parties and members of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s coalition.

The dispute is rooted in a fierce, years-long national debate over the blanket exemptions from military service that have long been given to Haredi men. Calls for Haredi conscription have mounted as Israel has fought a multifront war since the Hamas-led October 7, 2023, attack, while facing a growing manpower shortage. Ultra-Orthodox parties have sought to preserve the military service exemptions following a 2024 High Court ruling that found them unconstitutional, leading some state benefits to be curtailed.

The bill is explicitly designed to shield draft evaders by anchoring Torah study in legislation as equal to military service, in order to circumvent High Court rulings.

A coalition rebellion

The bill faced intense opposition and a small mutiny from several coalition lawmakers, with four ultimately voting against it: Likud MKs Dan Illouz and Yuli Edelstein, Deputy Foreign Minister Sharren Haskel and Religious Zionism MK Moshe Solomon.

All four lawmakers have long opposed efforts to preserve broad military service exemptions for yeshiva students. Edelstein was ousted from leading the powerful Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee and replaced with Bismuth for refusing to advance draft exemption legislation.

The mini-rebellion sparked a major uproar in the Knesset plenum. Shas MK Yossi Taieb had to be restrained and removed by Knesset guards after rushing toward Illouz following the vote, and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich subsequently removed Solomon from all Knesset committees as punishment for defying the faction’s position.

מהומה במליאה: דן אילוז מצביע נגד חוק יסוד: לימוד תורה, ח"כ יוסי טייב התעמת איתו@dillouz @yossitaieb........

© The Times of Israel