Israel’s Ex-Sephardic Chief Rabbi Yitzhak Yosef recently made a big statement. He went on to criticise ultra-Orthodox lawmakers for trusting the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. He slammed them as they secured exemptions for yeshiva students from military service.
What did Yosef say?
The spiritual leader of the Shas party accused Netanyahu of repeatedly delaying the promised legislation. This issue has become one of the biggest disputes in Israeli politics.
The High Court of Justice of ruled that the mass exemptions for Haredi yeshiva students were illegal. Since then, Netanyahu has postponed passing new laws that would give students legal protection from the draft. Shas left the government last month over the issue, and United Torah Judaism, another Haredi party, also withdrew from the coalition, moving into the opposition.
Yosef said. “He’s an atheist, he doesn’t believe in anything.” He added, “You trust someone like that?” He also said that the draft exemption law should have been passed as soon as the government was sworn in at the end of 2022.
Yosef even went out to say that military police are targeting Sephardic Haredi draft dodgers because “they know the mother is weak, the father is weak.” He even compared the situation with 19th-century Russia, when Jewish men were forced into the army. Yosef even told his supporters not to open the door if military officers come.
He also said that Torah study must remain the community’s highest value. He suggested that if forced to serve, the ultra-Orthodox might consider leaving Israel altogether.
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Shivam Verma is a journalist with over three years of experience in digital newsrooms. He currently works at NewsX, having previously worked for Firstpost and DNA India. A postgraduate diploma holder in Integrated Journalism from the Asian College of Journalism, Chennai, Shivam focuses on international affairs, diplomacy, defence, and politics. Beyond the newsroom, he is passionate about football—both playing and watching—and enjoys travelling to explore new places and cuisines.
