Overview

• On July 14, six of United Torah Judaism’s seven Knesset members from Degel Hatorah and Agudat Yisrael submitted their resignations, formalizing the party’s exit.
• Degel Hatorah said it pulled its MKs after repeated breaches of the 2022 agreement guaranteeing yeshiva students’ conscription deferments.
• Israel’s Supreme Court last year ordered the defense ministry to end decades-long Haredi draft exemptions and begin conscripting seminary students.
• Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s parliamentary support now stands at 61 of 120 seats, and the ultra-Orthodox Shas party has not declared its position.
• The dispute over the stalled conscription bill highlights deepening secular-religious rifts as the IDF faces manpower challenges in the Gaza conflict.