Overview
- The Knesset voted to enshrine Torah study as a 'basic value' and approved a temporary suspension of arrests for ultra‑orthodox draft refusers in a late session on Tuesday.
- The arrest moratorium is formally set for three months, reported to run to November 30, and is likely to be extended in practice until after the next parliament is formed.
- Israel Defense Forces leaders warned the measures will worsen an existing personnel shortfall by creating an incentive for young men to register as full‑time religious students to avoid service.
- Opposition parties and civil groups filed petitions with the Supreme Court hours after the votes, and the justices have already issued an interim order pausing the law pending review.
- The move reverses enforcement steps that followed the Supreme Court's June 2024 ruling requiring ultra‑orthodox conscription, affects tens of thousands of draft‑age men, and could reshape pre‑election coalition bargaining and social tensions.