Wednesday, November 25, 2015

Israeli Lawmakers Discard Orth.Jews' Mil. Service; Similar Law Invalidated by Supreme Court in 2012

Israeli lawmakers approved an amendment this week that postpones the mandatory military conscription of haredi Orthodox men and removes the penalties for not enlisting, the Forward website reports today (November 25, 2015).

The amendment to the Equal Service Law was approved on November 23 by a vote of 49 to 36.

Under the amendment, the law will not go into effect until 2020, with a second set of deadlines in 2023. The new amendment also cancels penalties against yeshiva students who do not enlist and collectively against the haredi Orthodox community if enlistment quotas are not met.

The centrist Yesh Atid party -- led by Yair Lapid -- said it would appeal the amendment to the Supreme Court. The Tai Law -- which allowed haredi men to defer army service indefinitely -- was invalidated by Israel's Supreme Court in February 2012 and expired in August of that year.

No comments:

Post a Comment