Ultra-Orthodox parties in Netanyahu's coalition threaten to vote for Bill calling for early elections
Ultra-Orthodox parties in prime minister
Binyamin Netanyahu's
coalition are threatening to vote with the opposition next week in favour of a Bill calling for early elections.
Elections must be held by October 2026. According to polls, Mr Netanyahu's right-wing and religious coalition is set to lose its majority. The Bill to be voted on in a preliminary vote next week would likely mean the election would be brought forward to later this year or early next year.
The 20-month
Gaza war
, the longest in
Israel's
history, has caused a serious rift in Mr Netanyahu's coalition.
Many of the voters of the right-wing parties have already served hundreds of days of army reserve duty, causing a huge strain on families and businesses.
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The ultra-Orthodox parties, in contrast, serve a constituency that, with a few exceptions, does not serve in the army. Calls for a more equitable sharing of the burden have been rebuffed by ultra-Orthodox leaders, who fear that military service will be the first step towards the adoption of a more secular lifestyle.
The fast-growing ultra-Orthodox community, which already makes up about 14 per cent of Israel's population, is angry that the government has failed to pass legislation enshrining in law an exemption from military service for yeshiva religious seminary students.
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International aid ship en route to Gaza will be stopped, warns Israeli military
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Israel's high court ruled a year ago that the draft exemption for the ultra-Orthodox community is illegal as it discriminates against other Israelis, who serve three years in the army from the age of 18.
However, the overwhelming majority of ultra-Orthodox Jews, known in Hebrew as Haredim, or God-fearing, have simply ignored their draft orders – so far with impunity.
Mr Netanyahu promised the ultra-Orthodox parties months ago that legislation would be passed enabling the community to continue avoiding military service, but he failed to deliver on that promise, partly due to fierce opposition from his own political base.
Legislation being drawn up by Yuli Edelstein, the head of the Knesset parliament's foreign affairs and defence committee, and a member of Mr Netanyahu's Likud party, calls for sweeping economic sanctions against those who avoid the draft and would also prevent offenders from receiving a driving licence or travelling abroad.
In an effort to exert pressure on Mr Netanyahu, the ultra-Orthodox parties have, for the last month, refused to support coalition private members' Bills, effectively paralysing the work of the Knesset.
The prospect of early elections is highly problematic for Mr Netanyahu. 'It looks like the beginning of the end,' a source involved in one ultra-Orthodox party said. 'The question is just how much time this end will take.'
However, ultra-Orthodox parties will have to take into account the fact that early elections could also send them into opposition.
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It's in Europe's interest to put sanctions on Israel
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11 hours ago
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Letters to the Editor, June 6th: On Trinity College's divestment, nursing homes and the Junior Cert
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How many will encourage their children to pursue a career in elderly care, or childcare? A career, in the area of nursing homes, which entails looking after the toilet needs of the incontinent. The stress of dealing with advanced dementia. The lifting of patients in and out of bed. The stress of being responsible for a room full of totally dependent people. I'm 73. I'm relatively healthy and live independently. Not everyone in my age bracket is so fortunate. I would be terrified of being treated in this manner. Many of those whom I know - including myself - would not be able for such work. Indeed, many would not countenance having to attend to the intimate needs of their own parents. There is a nettle to be grasped here. Transfer all care of the vulnerable to the State. Staff these facilities with qualified, well-paid people with incremental pay scales and permanent contracts. Whilst there is no excuse for the behaviour documented, there is now an onus upon all of us to accept that care of the vulnerable is properly one to be within the remit of the public sector. And, we should be prepared to pay for it. Caring is a career which should be well beyond basic minimum wage levels. Privatisation with remote statutory regulation is certainly not working for some. – Yours, etc, LARRY DUNNE, Co Wexford. Issues around immigration Sir, – Declan Doyle (Letters, June 5th) is of course right in that right wing parties are gleefully taking advantage of the huge increases in immigration. I somehow doubt that that the middle or left parties highlighting this will have any affect on voters . We know the cost of supporting immigrants here, imagine the cost then in Holland which had more than 200.000 last year. This is without the future cost of family members joining them in housing and services. It's not only the costs voters are worried over, but true or not, the fear of major cultural changes. If as he says more than 70 per cent of immigrants are working then the easiest solution is to have more visas for the sectors that need them. In the long term, supporting people in the countries and areas they are from has to be more effective than moving masses of people around the world. – Yours, etc, Enda Scanlon, Ennis, Co Clare. Dysfunction and deferral Sir, - For the past couple of years we have been hearing about the opening of the new children's hospital. Considerable dissatisfaction has been caused by the repeated postponement of the opening date. Now the big media story from CHI (Children's Hospital Ireland) is the apparent dysfunction of some of the clinical consultants in the hospital group. Reports have included stories of consultants not following international clinical protocols, experimenting with non-standard, non-approved implants and of consultants transferring public patients to a clinic where a consultant might receive extra payment. Remembering that the staff in the new children's hospital will be the same staff who are currently employed in the three different paediatric hospitals, the emphasis now should be on postponing the opening date of the new hospital until the problems among some of the consultant staff have been resolved, and until the three groups of staff agree to bond together without causing any major difficulties in the new hospital. – Yours, etc, TOM O'ROURKE, (retired doctor) Co Wexford. Facts about figures Sir. – Tomás Ryan in his interesting article addressing the opportunities which could arise for European scientific research arising from recent US policy changes ( 'I am often asked by students how to plan for a career in research. 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Junior Cert English Paper Sir, – May I trenchantly disagree with those teachers who felt the Junior Cert English paper was 'balanced and fair' or that the paper 'struck a good balance between familiarity and challenge'. It was none of those things. It was, in fact, grossly unfair and seemed deliberately designed to trip students and teachers up. Never mind the sudden appearance of a question on short stories, something never seen before, the sheer length of the paper was an abomination. Questions on seen and unseen poetry, Shakespeare, a film/novel question along with two questions on podcasts along with a diary entry. And all this to be done in two hours. Allowing students no time whatsoever to explore in any detail the works they have been studying for three years. It was the examination equivalent of a fast food buffet. Write as much as you can and don't mind the quality. I often wonder if the Department or the Minister of the SEC understand or even care about the frustration such a shocking exam causes in students and teachers. And then I realise I already know the answer to that question. Thirty-three years teaching now and I've never felt as disillusioned. – Yours, etc, ALAN O'CONNOR, Donnycarney, Dublin 9, Funding playgrounds Sir, – James Larkin questioned should Novo Nordisk be funding playgrounds ( 'Should the maker of Ozempic be funding children's playgrounds in Ireland ?, 'May 31st). Our social responsibility focus is on initiatives that help contribute to preventing chronic disease from occurring in the first place, especially among children. Ireland has one of the highest levels of obesity in Europe, with 60 per cent of adults and over 20 per cent of children and young people living with overweight and obesity, according to the HSE. As outlined in the HSE Healthy Weight for Children Action Plan 2024-2028, over the last 30 years, similar to other countries, the levels of overweight and obesity in Ireland have increased significantly across all age groups, social class and genders. They also outline that this shift in population level Body Mass Index is heavily influenced by changes in the environment that we are born into, live, work, play and age in. Launched in November 2024, 'Play at Primary School' is a Novo Nordisk Ireland partnership with DEIS schools installing new playground equipment to encourage physical activity and active play among primary school children in local communities across Ireland. The new equipment encourages children to play actively, outside, and with their friends, helping build good habits for life and healthier lives which is what we are working towards in our own healthier Ireland strategy. We are proud to be able to play a part, together with school communities towards this goal. –– Yours, etc, NINA T. HOVLAND, General Manager & Vice President Novo Nordisk Ireland. Pantomime sport Sir, – Perhaps it is typical of Munster Rugby that they don't waste time or effort whingeing over the behaviour of some of the Sharks during the penalty shoot out last Saturday. However the reaction of some of rugby officials is surprising and somewhat disappointing. I would suggest that if people want to see pantomime villains in 'sport' then they tune into the World Wrestling Federation. Rugby should be about commitment, sportsmanship and the best team on the day winning! – Yours, etc, DAVE ROBBIE, Booterstown, Co Dublin.
