Latest news with #militaryconscription
Yahoo
21-07-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Netanyahu is in a tight spot after UTJ exits the gov't - what happens next?
The move by the six United Torah Judaism (UTJ) party members leaves Netanyahu's nationalist-religious government extremely vulnerable, with just a one-seat majority in the Knesset. One of Israel's ultra-Orthodox Jewish parties has quit Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's coalition in a long-running dispute over a new military conscription bill. The move by the six United Torah Judaism (UTJ) party members leaves Netanyahu's nationalist-religious government extremely vulnerable, with just a one-seat majority in the Knesset. Has Netanyahu's government collapsed? No. But it might. UTJ is allied with ultra-Orthodox coalition member Shas, which has traditionally maintained a close alignment with UTJ. If Shas quits, Netanyahu will lose his majority, and his government will struggle to function. However, UTJ's withdrawal from the coalition will only take effect 48 hours after submission of its ministers' resignation letters, which gives the prime minister some time to seek a compromise. Even if that fails, Knesset goes on summer recess at the end of July, giving Netanyahu around three months to try and resolve the crisis. A lot can happen in that time, and Netanyahu has shown extraordinary political survival skills over the years. How do Israeli governments work? Governments rarely complete a full four-year term in Israel. No single party has ever won an outright majority in an election, so governments are formed by a coalition of parties. Prime ministers have often had to contend with sectarian demands and ideological clashes within their coalitions. When divisions emerge, coalitions can quickly unravel and governments fall. Will there be an early election? Possibly. But not for several months. There are a few political paths that would lead to the ballot being brought forward. They include the Knesset voting to dissolve itself and the government failing to pass an annual budget. In no scenario would an election be immediate. Some political analysts have predicted that a ballot will likely be brought forward from the end of 2026 to early next year. How do elections work? Israel's elections are parliamentary. The 120 Knesset seats are allocated by proportional representation to national party lists, which may secure seats after passing a threshold of 3.25% of the vote. Since 2019, Israel has held five national elections. The last one, which gave Netanyahu a decisive victory, was in November 2022. Successive polls of voter intentions have shown his coalition would lose an election, were it to be held today. Coalition shape Although Netanyahu's coalition has fluctuated over the past two and a half years, with political shifts, finding replacements for UTJ to join the ranks of his government, which is comprised of right-wing and religious Jewish parties, would be extremely difficult. The opposition includes centrist, left-wing, right-wing, liberal, and conservative factions. Coalition composition Total Knesset seats: 120 Number of factions: 13 Total coalition seats: 61 Seats held by Netanyahu's Likud party: 32 Seats held by ultra-Orthodox party Shas: 11 Seats held by Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich's Religious Zionism party: 7 Seats held by National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir's Jewish Power party: 6 Seats held by National Right party: 4 Seats held by the Noam party: 1 Will political turmoil affect the war in Gaza? This is still unclear. US-backed ceasefire talks are underway in Qatar. Israelis have become increasingly weary of the war against Hamas in Gaza, and surveys show popular support for ending it with a deal that will bring back remaining hostages held by the Palestinian terrorist group. Netanyahu still has enough support within his government to secure a ceasefire. However, the two far-right parties in Netanyahu's coalition—Otzma Yehudit and Religious Zionism—are unlikely to support ending the war entirely anytime soon. Solve the daily Crossword
Reuters
16-07-2025
- Politics
- Reuters
Ultra-Orthodox party quits Israeli cabinet but throws Netanyahu a lifeline
JERUSALEM, July 16 (Reuters) - An ultra-Orthodox party quit Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's cabinet on Wednesday, but said it would remain within his coalition for now, giving the government more time to resolve a thorny dispute over military conscription. Another ultra-Orthodox group abandoned the coalition on Tuesday over the deeply divisive issue, leaving Netanyahu with just a one-seat majority in parliament. But rather than follow suit, the other ultra-Orthodox partner, Shas, said on Wednesday it would just pull its ministers from government ranks while continuing to back the coalition in parliament. "Shas representatives ... find with a heavy heart that they cannot stay in the government and be a part of it," the group said in a statement, a day after the United Torah Judaism (UTJ) party had announced its full walkout. The Shas decision means Netanyahu does not face the threat of early elections, for now, nor does it undermine his efforts to secure a possible Gaza ceasefire. Israel's parliament starts a three-month summer recess on July 27, giving Netanyahu time to try to resolve the problem of who should serve in the military -- a debate that has long caused huge tensions within Israel's deeply divided society. There was no immediate comment from Netanyahu or other partners within his increasingly splintered cabinet. While the ultra-Orthodox parties have focused their anger on the conscription issue, far-right parties have been pressing Netanyahu not to make concessions in ceasefire talks with Hamas militants that are underway in Qatar. National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich want Israel to press on with the war, but Netanyahu would still be likely to have enough cabinet votes to back any eventual ceasefire without them. Underscoring divisions in the coalition, Shas in its statement on Wednesday urged Netanyahu to do "everything in his power" to reach a deal with Hamas. Israelis have become increasingly weary of the 21-month war in Gaza, which began with Israel's single deadliest day on October 7, 2023, when a surprise attack by Hamas killed 1,200 and saw 251 taken hostage by the Palestinian militants. Israel's subsequent offensive against Hamas has killed more than 58,000 Palestinians, according to health officials, displaced almost the entire population of Gaza, led to a humanitarian crisis and left much of the enclave in ruins. It has also exacted Israel's highest military death toll in decades, with around 450 soldiers killed so far in Gaza combat. This has added fuel to an already explosive debate over a new conscription bill that lies at the centre of the latest crisis to rattle Netanyahu's coalition, which took office in late 2022 and is due to stay in office until the autumn of 2026. Ultra-Orthodox seminary students have long been exempt from mandatory military service. Many Israelis are angered by what they see as an unfair burden carried by the mainstream who serve. Ultra-Orthodox Jewish leaders say full-time devotion to the study of holy scriptures is sacrosanct and fear their young men will steer away from religious life if they are drafted into the military. Last year the Supreme Court ordered an end to the exemption. Parliament has been trying to work out a new conscription bill, which has so far failed to meet UTJ demands.
Telegraph
15-07-2025
- Politics
- Telegraph
Netanyahu's government on the brink as party quits coalition
Benjamin Netanyahu's governing majority is hanging in the balance after an ultra-Orthodox party quit his ruling coalition in protest of a new military conscription bill. United Torah Judaism (UTC), one of six parties in the volatile Right-wing alliance, withdrew its support for Mr Netanyahu on Monday night, leaving the ruling coalition with just a one-seat majority in the Knesset, or parliament. A second, larger ultra-Orthodox party, Shas, which traditionally kept in lockstep with UTC, may soon follow suit. If it pulls support, its 11 seats will see Mr Netanyahu's parliamentary majority wiped out. Ultra-Orthodox parties have argued that a bill to exempt yeshiva students was a key promise in their agreement to join the coalition in late 2022. But in June, Israel's supreme court ruled that ultra-Orthodox Jews must be conscripted into the army amid growing pressure from the military for more manpower amid the ongoing war in Gaza. The debate pits Mr Netanyahu against the hard-Right religious positions in his coalition and the majority of the population that is calling for reform after sending its sons and daughters to war. Three Israeli soldiers were killed in northern Gaza on Monday, adding to the mounting Israeli military casualty count in recent weeks as the war grinds on in the battered enclave. Israel's longest-serving prime minister is already battling for his political survival. He is trailing in polls and facing growing calls to resign, while reports suggest he is trying to stall ceasefire negotiations that could see the return of the remaining hostages. The end of his fracturing coalition would most likely trigger early elections, which polling suggests Mr Netanyahu would lose. Despite the crisis, analysts say it is too soon to tell whether it could spell the end of the government, even if both ultra-Orthodox parties leave the coalition. There is still a possibility that Mr Netanyahu could seek a compromise. The Knesset is also due to go on summer recess for three months, in which it would be hard to dissolve the government or trigger snap elections. Ultra-Orthodox lawmakers have long threatened to leave the coalition over the conscription bill, which could see tens of thousands of the community drafted into the military like other young Israelis. Mr Netanyahu's political crisis comes amid ongoing, but gridlocked, US-backed ceasefire talks in Qatar. Polls show popular support for a deal that will bring home the remaining 50 hostages, 20 of whom are still believed to be alive, but Mr Netanyahu's hard-Right coalition partners, who are seeking a long war and the occupation of Gaza. The prime minister occupies a perilous position, dependent on support from Bezalel Smotrich, the finance minister who leads the Religious Zionism party, and Itamar Ben-Gvir, the national security minister and head of the Jewish Power party. Together, they could bring down Mr Netanyahu's coalition if they choose. The ultra-Orthodox community – known as Haredim in Hebrew – has been exempt from military service since the founding of the Jewish state in 1948, when the minority made up just several hundred. But as their numbers grew dramatically, and especially since the war in Gaza, so has the resentment over this privilege. The Israel Defence Forces said on July 6 that it was set to issue 54,000 draft summonses to Haredi young men in the coming month, and to 'intensify enforcement measures against draft evaders and deserters across all sectors of the population'.
BreakingNews.ie
15-07-2025
- Politics
- BreakingNews.ie
Explained: Netanyahu in tight spot after party quits Israeli coalition
One of Israel's ultra-Orthodox Jewish parties has quit prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu's coalition in a long-running dispute over a new military conscription bill. The move by the six United Torah Judaism (UTJ) party members leaves Netanyahu's nationalist-religious government extremely vulnerable with just a one-seat majority in the Knesset. Advertisement Has Netanyahu's government collapsed? No. But it might. UTJ is allied with another ultra-Orthodox coalition member called Shas, which has traditionally kept in lockstep with UTJ. If Shas quits, Netanyahu will lose his majority in parliament and his government will find it hard to function. However, UTJ's withdrawal from the coalition will only go into effect 48 hours after submission of its ministers' resignation letters, which gives the prime minister some time to seek a compromise. Even if that fails, parliament goes on summer break at the end of July, giving Netanyahu around three months to try and resolve the crisis. A lot can happen in that time and Netanyahu has shown extraordinary political survival skills over the years. How do Israeli governments work? Governments rarely complete a full four-year term in Israel. No single party has ever won an outright majority in an election, so governments are formed by a coalition of parties. Prime ministers have often had to contend with sectarian demands and ideological clashes within their coalitions. When divisions emerge, coalitions can quickly unravel and governments fall. Advertisement Will there be an early election? Possibly. But not for several months. There are a few political paths that would lead to the ballot being brought forward. They include parliament voting to dissolve itself and the government failing to pass an annual budget. In no scenario would an election be immediate. Some political analysts have predicted that a ballot will likely be brought forward from the end of 2026 to early next year. How do elections work? Israel's elections are parliamentary. The 120 Knesset seats are allocated by proportional representation to national party lists, which may secure seats after passing a threshold of 3.25 per cent of the vote. Since 2019, Israel has held five national elections. The last one, which gave Netanyahu a decisive victory, was in November 2022. Successive polls of voter intentions have shown his coalition would lose an election, were it to be held today. Advertisement Coalition shape Ireland Ban trade with illegal settlements, prominent Isra... Read More Although Netanyahu's coalition has fluctuated over the past three years, with political shifts, finding replacements for UTJ to join the ranks of his government, which is made up of right-wing and religious Jewish parties, would be extremely difficult. The opposition includes centrist, left-wing, right-wing, liberal and conservative factions. Coalition composition Total Knesset seats: 120 Number of factions: 13 Total coalition seats: 61 Seats held by Netanyahu's Likud party: 32 Seats held by ultra-Orthodox party Shas: 11 Seats held by finance minister Bezalel Smotrich's Religious Zionism party: 7 Seats held by national security minister Itamar Ben-Gvir's Jewish Power party: 6 Seats held by National Right party: 4 Seats held by Noam party: 1 Will political trumoil affect the war in Gaza? This is still unclear. US-backed ceasefire talks are underway in Qatar. Israelis have become increasingly weary of the war against Hamas in Gaza and surveys show popular support for ending it with a deal that will bring back remaining hostages held by the Palestinian militant group. Netanyahu still has enough support within his government to secure a ceasefire. However, the two far-right parties in Netanyahu's coalition – Jewish Power and Religious Zionism – are unlikely to back ending the war entirely anytime soon.
Al Arabiya
15-07-2025
- Politics
- Al Arabiya
Netanyahu in tight spot after party quits Israeli coalition
One of Israel's ultra-Orthodox Jewish parties has quit Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's coalition in a long-running dispute over a new military conscription bill. The move by the six United Torah Judaism (UTJ) party members leaves Netanyahu's nationalist-religious government extremely vulnerable with just a one-seat majority in the Knesset. Has Netanyahu's government collapsed? No. But it might. UTJ is allied with another ultra-Orthodox coalition member called Shas, which has traditionally kept in lockstep with UTJ. If Shas quits, Netanyahu will lose his majority in parliament and his government will find it hard to function. However, UTJ's withdrawal from the coalition will only go into effect 48 hours after submission of its ministers' resignation letters, which gives the prime minister some time to seek a compromise. Even if that fails, parliament goes on summer break at the end of July, giving Netanyahu around three months to try and resolve the crisis. A lot can happen in that time and Netanyahu has shown extraordinary political survival skills over the years. How do Israeli governments work? Governments rarely complete a full four-year term in Israel. No single party has ever won an outright majority in an election, so governments are formed by a coalition of parties. Prime ministers have often had to contend with sectarian demands and ideological clashes within their coalitions. When divisions emerge, coalitions can quickly unravel and governments fall. Will there be an early election? Possibly. But not for several months. There are a few political paths that would lead to the ballot being brought forward. They include parliament voting to dissolve itself and the government failing to pass an annual budget. In no scenario would an election be immediate. Some political analysts have predicted that a ballot will likely be brought forward from the end of 2026 to early next year. How do elections work? Israel's elections are parliamentary. The 120 Knesset seats are allocated by proportional representation to national party lists, which may secure seats after passing a threshold of 3.25 percent of the vote. Since 2019, Israel has held five national elections. The last one, which gave Netanyahu a decisive victory, was in November 2022. Successive polls of voter intentions have shown his coalition would lose an election, were it to be held today. Coalition shape Although Netanyahu's coalition has fluctuated over the past 2-1/2 years, with political shifts, finding replacements for UTJ to join the ranks of his government, which is made up of right-wing and religious Jewish parties, would be extremely difficult. The opposition includes centrist, left-wing, right-wing, liberal and conservative factions. Coalition composition Total Knesset seats: 120 Number of factions: 13 Total coalition seats: 61 Seats held by Netanyahu's Likud party: 32 Seats held by ultra-Orthodox party Shas: 11 Seats held by Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich's Religious Zionism party: 7 Seats held by National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir's Jewish Power party: 6 Seats held by National Right party: 4 Seats held by Noam party: 1 Will political turmoil affect the war in Gaza? This is still unclear. US-backed ceasefire talks are underway in Qatar. Israelis have become increasingly weary of the war against Hamas in Gaza and surveys show popular support for ending it with a deal that will bring back remaining hostages held by the Palestinian militant group. Netanyahu still has enough support within his government to secure a ceasefire. However, the two far-right parties in Netanyahu's coalition - Jewish Power and Religious Zionism - are unlikely to back ending the war entirely anytime soon.
