It is called the Holy Land, and there are those who believe it is protected by God. How else, they ask, do you explain a tiny country winning every major war it has fought since its founding?
For some religious Jews, that belief is an inarguable truth.
Never mind the Iron Dome, fighter jets and intelligence agencies.
They argue that Israel’s survival is the result of their devotion as observant Jews to prayer, Torah study and the 613 mitzvot.
The result is an extraordinary situation for a nation that has so often been forced to go to war in its short history. A large share of Israelis are conscripted to provide the military personnel that have again and again successfully triumphed against overwhelming odds and vastly superior numbers.
Common sense dictates that every single man and woman of suitable age available is needed for national service.
Yet Charedi men have throughout the history of Israel been exempt from the draft.
This long-running contentious pressure point of Israeli politics has been brought back into stark relief with the latest conflict with Iran, now spreading into Lebanon. Months of fighting may lie ahead, particularly in the campaign to clear Hezbollah away from south of the Litani river once and for all, and reclaim those parts of northern Israel that are continuously subject to bombardments from the terrorist militia.
Who knows how long any war may last, but in a historic moment that presents Israel with unprecedented strategic opportunities it certainly makes sense to maximise manpower and keep all planning options open.
Thus it is understood 450,000 reserve soldiers may very soon be mobilised in a country with a population of just 10 million – proportionately equivalent to 3.5 million in the UK.
The prospect only adds further fuel to the increasingly heated debate in the past few years over tens of thousands of yeshiva students being spared the draft.
The legal basis for those exemptions expired in 2023, meaning that in theory roughly 90,000 Charedi men are now subject to the same draft laws as everyone else.
Israel’s Supreme Court reinforced that obligation in 2024, ruling that the state could not both require conscription and continue funding religious study programmes for those who refuse to enlist.
The legal decision triggered a prolonged and chaotic effort to pass new legislation regulating the issue.
So far, several politicians have lost positions after refusing to support what critics describe as a “non-enlistment law”, arguing that in its current form it would do little to significantly increase Charedi enlistment.
The Knesset’s Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee has held countless sessions and hundreds of hours of hearings on the draft bill.
Politicians, military officials, bereaved families and reservist organisations have all taken part in the marathon and deeply contentious discussions.
Yet despite the time and political energy invested, the legislation remains stuck.
At times the committee has appeared to be, as one observer put it, “driving full throttle in neutral”.
Still, a former senior government adviser who has worked with ministers across the political spectrum, says the issue must be resolved for the sake of the future of the state of Israel.
The Jerusalem insider says: “This is an existential issue, no less than defeating the Iranian regime.
“We have seen post–October 7 that Israel needs more soldiers, not fewer, and [members of] the IDF – especially those who have left their families and jobs for hundreds of days of reserve duty – have lost marriages and businesses.”
He points out that around one-third of all first graders in Israel are from the Charedi community, the fastest-growing sector of the population.
He stresses it leaves the chilling prospect when this generation reaches the military age of a significantly lower proportion of young Israelis serving in the army than do today.
The adviser adds: “Moreover, the rest of Israeli society increasingly believes that the Haredi community contributes less than others while receiving more benefits.”
But get away from the fiercely fought political arguments, and Charedim will voice a perspective of heartfelt faith.
As one community figure explains: “Charedim care deeply about the Jewish people and the Land of Israel, and they recognise the importance of the state.
"But they believe that Torah must remain the ultimate foundation of Jewish life, and that its principles cannot be compromised for political or national goals.”
Charedi leaders contend that they are being unfairly portrayed as taking advantage of other parts of Israeli society providing for them and defending the country from its enemies.
They dispute the perception that Charedi men do not work, saying it is misleading and used to discredit the community, and noting that in many households at least one family member is employed or runs a business.
One community advocate insists: “Despite the harsh rhetoric sometimes directed toward them, the Charedi world continues to devote enormous resources to helping all Israelis, regardless of whether they are religious or secular.”
But it should be noted that there is a difference of opinion even within the religious section of Israeli society over military service.
Many in the Charedi community cite the medieval sage Maimonides and his legal code, the Mishneh Torah, to argue that those devoted entirely to religious study occupy a role similar to the biblical Tribe of Levi and spiritually protect the nation.
Religious Zionist scholars, however, dispute this interpretation, saying that Maimonides ruled that in a mandatory war – known in Jewish law as a milchemet mitzvah – the obligation to defend the community applies to everyone.
Regardless of the theological debate, what’s in no doubt is that this fundamental dispute within Israeli society presents a major political headache for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
After the last election, he formed a narrow 64-seat coalition dependent on the religious parties Shas and United Torah Judaism, even as polls showed growing public frustration over unequal military service.
With Israel’s war with Iran ongoing, Netanyahu and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich have temporarily set aside the controversial conscription bill, postponing a political crisis over who should bear the burden of defending the state.
As long as the conflict continues throughout March and the national budget passes at the end of the month, the Charedi parties lose their most powerful bargaining chip: the threat to vote against the budget unless exemptions are restored.
Under Israeli law, if the budget does not pass within 90 days of the new year, the country automatically heads to elections.
After the budget vote, the Knesset will break for the Passover recess.
When politicians return in May, the country will already be drifting toward elections scheduled for October – or possibly even earlier in September.
In that environment, the government may have little political incentive to reopen such a divisive issue.
Only intense pressure from Charedi leaders could force the matter back onto the agenda.
Meanwhile, Israel is already enforcing draft laws more strictly than in the past.
Measures include cuts to yeshiva funding and other benefits, travel restrictions, and the possibility of potential legal penalties for those who ignore enlistment orders.
The war that erupted after the October 7 attacks has slightly altered the picture. In the 2024 recruitment year, 2,811 Charedi men enlisted, more than double the pre-war numbers.
Yet current military dictates have pushed an exemption that many Israelis have for so long only grudgingly accepted into what may now be entirely unsustainable territory.
Israel’s military says it urgently needs around 12,000 additional soldiers, particularly for combat and support roles.
Soldiers in some units are rotating from Gaza back to Gaza again and then to the northern border to confront Hezbollah.
With elections approaching, the legal and legislative impasse will soon have to be revisited. When it does, deeply held religious convictions will collide head-on with the demands of the state and its laws.
It is a battle that may reshape Israel for ever.
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