Leaked recordings show ultra-Orthodox rabbi backing enlistment in principle

Leaked recordings aired on Channel 13’s main evening broadcast indicate that Rabbi Moshe Berzovsky, son of the Slonim rebbe and a senior figure in Agudat Yisrael, privately supports drafting ultra-Orthodox young men who do not study Torah. The comments, which sources say he would never make publicly, come as the Haredi fight against military enlistment is intensifying.

According to the broadcast, the recordings suggest that behind the scenes the picture is different from the public stance usually taken by ultra-Orthodox leaders. In them, Berzovsky is heard backing enlistment on principle for Haredi youths who are not in Torah study.

The report frames the remarks as especially notable because Berzovsky is identified both as a rabbi and as a prominent political figure in Agudat Yisrael, a faction within United Torah Judaism. The item was presented as an exclusive by Yoeli Brim on the main edition.

The publication did not specify when or where the recordings were made, but it said they surfaced now amid a sharper confrontation over military conscription and the draft law. The broadcast suggests the internal debate over enlistment may be more nuanced than the public messaging from the Haredi camp.