United Torah Judaism has set two core conditions for joining a coalition led by the so-called Change Bloc. The first is an immediate halt to arrests of yeshiva students, and the second is a signed commitment to pass an agreed draft law before the next government's first state budget.
The chareidi leadership has drawn up the two demands as threshold conditions as coalition talks to form the next government gather pace. They are designed to secure the status of Torah scholars both in the immediate term and through long-term legislation.
The first demand would remove the immediate threat of arrest facing yeshiva students even before the new government is sworn in. To get around legal obstacles and avoid being struck down by the High Court of Justice, as happened in the past with the so-called "Deri Law," the proposal under discussion is a temporary provision that would apply equally to everyone required to serve who is classified as a deserter, with no distinction between chareidi and secular Israelis.
The aim is to create a temporary transition period until a permanent draft law is in place. According to the report, those behind the idea believe the temporary nature of the arrangement and the expectation that enlistment targets will be legislated later will soften the opposition expected from the defense establishment and IDF leadership.
Alongside the interim fix, UTJ wants to ensure the draft issue is not shelved or allowed to fade once a coalition is formed. Because a comprehensive draft law is a complex process that cannot be completed before the government is sworn in, the party is demanding that an agreed text be finalized now and approved by the Councils of Torah Sages, the rabbinic bodies that guide the party.
Under the condition UTJ has set, the heads of the Change Bloc would be required to sign a written commitment stating that the text is acceptable to them and pledging to complete its second and third readings in the Knesset before the first state budget is passed.
