Party vows only to back a law forcing real haredi enlistment essential for Israel’s national defense.
The Religious Zionist Party appears increasingly inclined to support the government’s new conscription bill—despite its broad exemptions for the haredi sector—after internal consultations and a lengthy strategic meeting with leading Zionist rabbis. The discussion followed intense public backlash over the possibility that the party might endorse a framework perceived as too lenient amid Israel’s heightened security needs following the Gaza war.
The Tuesday meeting brought together party MKs and an impressive forum of prominent rabbis, including Rabbi Haim Gantz, Rabbi Hananel Etrog, Rabbi Shimon Cohen, Rabbi Haim Wolfson, Rabbi Eliyahu Blumenzwieg, Rabbi Yaakov Medan, Rabbi Yoel Manovitch, Rabbi Eyal Greiner, Rabbi Yigal Levinstein, Rabbi Yehuda Sadan, Rabbi Shmuel Haber, and Rabbi Eliezer Shinwald. Their mandate: evaluate whether the proposed law would actually produce real, measurable enlistment of haredi youth into the IDF.
Participants voiced sharply differing views. Some warned the bill might achieve little on the ground, acting as another symbolic gesture rather than meaningful reform. Others raised concerns about the erosion of trust with the religious Zionist community, noting unfulfilled promises to Hesder yeshivas, whose students already shoulder significant service responsibility.
By the meeting’s conclusion, a clear message emerged: the bill must be changed. Party chairman Minister Bezalel Smotrich accepted the rabbis’ position and committed to pushing amendments that ensure the legislation will drive substantial haredi enlistment without compromising national values or burdening those already serving.
The faction later released a clarifying statement rejecting media claims of a finalized decision. It stressed that the party is still formulating its demands and will continue its in-depth learning track alongside rabbinic leadership. The goal, they said, is to correct historic inequalities, overcome entrenched resistance, and bring haredim into meaningful IDF service.
The party underscored that it will only support a law that guarantees “real and swift enlistment of haredim,” vital for Israel’s security needs and to ease pressure on front-line combat families. As the sector with the highest enlistment rates, the Religious Zionist Party emphasized that it speaks on behalf of those who carry the national defense burden.
“Our sole consideration is the security of Israel and the religious-national obligation of IDF service for all sectors,” the party stated, distancing itself from political campaigns and external pressures.
The internal deliberations signal a assertive stance: the Religious Zionist Party intends to reshape the draft bill into one that strengthens Israel’s defenses, addresses demographic service gaps, and ensures all communities share in protecting the nation—especially as Israel confronts ongoing threats from Hamas, Hezbollah, and Iran-backed actors across the region.
