Defense Minister Katz Pushes Temporary Freeze on Yeshiva Student Arrests Ahead of Elections

Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz has requested an urgent discussion in the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee to promote a temporary order halting the arrests of yeshiva students obligated for military service for three months until the upcoming elections. This initiative follows a letter sent by Government Secretary Yossi Fox to committee chairman Boaz Bismuth, expressing support for a similar proposal. Katz emphasized the need to precisely define who qualifies as a yeshiva student engaged in regular Torah study to be included in the enforcement freeze, clarifying that the policy will not apply to draft evaders who are not Torah learners.

The move comes after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s press conference, where he claimed that arrests of yeshiva students harm efforts to recruit from the ultra-Orthodox community and described arrests occurring inside yeshivas, a scenario not independently confirmed. Netanyahu argued that such enforcement alienates young Haredim from military service and complicates cooperation with their leadership. Following Netanyahu’s remarks, Yossi Fox called for a limited-time freeze on arrests, criticizing the recent wave of detentions for failing to significantly increase enlistment and for deepening tensions with the Haredi public. Fox also criticized enforcement policies for insufficiently distinguishing between active yeshiva students and others.

Simultaneously, the Knesset has begun debating a Basic Law on Torah Study, promoted by Degel HaTorah chairman MK Moshe Gafni. Gafni stated that Torah study has historically preserved the Jewish people and argued it is time to grant it constitutional status in Israel. These developments, including the proposed enforcement freeze, political pressure from Haredi parties, and the push for constitutional recognition of Torah study, reflect the coalition’s efforts to reach an arrangement with ultra-Orthodox factions amid ongoing political and public debates over military conscription.