Haredi rabbi calls Likud MK Yuli Edelstein 'traitor' over draft law
A prominent Sephardi haredi (ultra-Orthodox) leader, Rabbi Aharon Butbul, launched sharp criticism against Likud MKYuli Edelstein, chairman of the Knesset's Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, and Supreme Court President Yitzhak Amit regarding the draft law.
On his weekly program on Kol B'Rama Radio, Butbul accused a Likud MK of being a "traitor to Israel" and a "scheming saboteur" motivated by personal ambition to become prime minister.
"There's someone in Likud who is a traitor to Israel and a scheming saboteur because he wants to rule and become prime minister," Butbul declared.
He continued, 'Even if the conscription law passes in three readings in the Knesset, there's a very high chance that the High Court will overturn it. Right now, sitting on the High Court is Yitzhak Amit, who thinks of himself as prime minister and even more. I don't want to say anything too harsh, but he decides everything and will determine what is legal and what is not.'
Meanwhile, haredi political parties have renewed their threat to escalate their opposition to the coalition due to the ongoing absence of a draft of the conscription law.
The haredim have resumed their boycott of voting, and there are talks of extending it by refusing to participate in Knesset votes with the coalition unless a draft of the law is presented to the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee.
This move could dramatically affect the coalition, especially with government bills set to be brought before the Knesset for second and third readings on Monday. A collapse of such bills could hasten the coalition's demise even more than a preliminary vote to dissolve the Knesset.
The Jerusalem Post reported last Tuesday that the text of a law regulating haredi IDF service is expected to be published within days, and the legislative process will likely resume in the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee at some point next week, a spokesperson for committee chairman Edelstein said Thursday.
The text is expected to reflect agreements reached between Edelstein and representatives of the Knesset's haredi parties on June 12, the eve of theIsraeli strike against Iran, with some adaptations, the spokesperson said.
IDF sources said that 54,000 draft orders would be sent to eligible haredi men who have yet to receive them as soon as July 8.
As of June 2024, there is no legal exemption from IDF service for the more than 80,000 eligible haredi men. Government representatives pledged to the High Court of Justice that the IDF would draft a maximum capacity of 4,800 haredim in the 2024-2025 draft year, which ended on June 30. However, the IDF only reached about half this number.
Eliav Breuer contributed to this report.
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