United Torah Judaism Sets Terms for Coalition Entry
Translated & summarized from Srugim by baba
United Torah Judaism has presented its core demands to the "Change Bloc" parties as conditions for joining the upcoming coalition government. Key demands include a temporary order to prevent the immediate arrest of yeshiva students and a commitment to pass a permanent conscription law before the state budget is approved. These demands were formulated after meetings between UTJ Chairman Yaakov Asher and leaders of Yesh Atid and Yisrael Beiteinu.
The story in 5 lines · by baba
- United Torah Judaism demands a temporary order to prevent yeshiva student arrests before coalition formation.
- The party requires a commitment to pass a permanent conscription law before the state budget is approved.
- A temporary conscription order would apply equally to all deserters, regardless of religious affiliation.
- UTJ Chairman Yaakov Asher held separate meetings with Gadi Eisenkot and Avigdor Lieberman.
- The demands aim to secure the status of Torah scholars in the long term.
United Torah Judaism (UTJ) has presented its central demands to the "Change Bloc" parties as a prerequisite for joining the next coalition government. These demands, reported by Kikar HaShabbat, aim to secure the status of Torah scholars both immediately and through long-term legislation.
The first demand addresses the immediate threat of arrests for yeshiva students, seeking to prevent this before the new government is sworn in. To circumvent legal challenges and potential High Court of Justice (Bagatz) disqualification, a temporary order is being proposed. This order would apply equally to all individuals liable for conscription who are defined as deserters, regardless of religious affiliation, creating a transition period until a permanent conscription law is enacted. This temporary measure is expected to soften opposition from the defense establishment and IDF leadership.
Alongside the temporary solution, UTJ wants to ensure the conscription issue is not postponed or diluted after the coalition is formed. Since a comprehensive conscription law is complex and unlikely to be passed before the swearing-in, the party is demanding an agreed-upon text be finalized now, with approval from the Council of Torah Sages. The "Change Bloc" leaders would be required to sign a commitment document agreeing to this text and pledging to pass it in its second and third readings before the first state budget is approved.
These conditions were set following a series of discreet meetings held by UTJ Chairman MK Yaakov Asher in the past week. Asher met separately with Yesh Atid Chairman MK Gadi Eisenkot and Yisrael Beiteinu Chairman MK Avigdor Lieberman to explore possibilities for forming the next coalition.
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