Overview

• Lawmakers held a preliminary vote on Wednesday to dissolve the Knesset amid deadlocked negotiations over ultra-Orthodox conscription exemptions.
• Ultra-Orthodox parties have warned they will support dissolution unless seminary students retain blanket exemptions from mandatory military service.
• The Gaza war’s heavy toll on troops and nearly 55,000 Palestinian casualties has intensified scrutiny of Haredi exemptions and troop shortages.
• Top Haredi rabbis issued a decree reinforcing opposition to enlistment, complicating coalition efforts to forge a compromise.
• Polls indicate Netanyahu’s coalition would likely lose an early election as voters remain disillusioned by security failures and the prolonged Gaza campaign.