Haredi Weekly Criticizes Aryeh Deri and Moshe Gafni for Failed Draft Exemption Law

The Haredi weekly newspaper "B’Kehila," one of the most widely read in the ultra-Orthodox sector, launched a sharp critique against veteran politicians Aryeh Deri and Moshe Gafni over their handling of the draft exemption law for yeshiva students. The paper accused them of wasting valuable political capital on a law that was clearly doomed to fail, using it as an election campaign stunt rather than a genuine effort to protect the Haredi community.

Editor-in-chief Shlomo Cook wrote that despite the law passing in the Knesset, the Supreme Court immediately issued an interim injunction freezing its implementation, leaving yeshiva students without the intended protection. Cook cited a senior Haredi legal expert who warned that the rushed legislation would provide legal ammunition against the community and that the linkage between the arrest freeze law and the Basic Law on Torah Study was a strategic error. The expert said, "They fired the entire clip for nothing," implying the law was sacrificed for short-term political calm.

The legal expert also criticized the careless legislative process, noting that the politicians ignored legal advice and failed to include military representatives in discussions. The expert suggested that Deri and Gafni’s goal was merely to show voters they were acting, without truly solving the problem. Cook further accused Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of avoiding voting on the arrest freeze law to evade political damage, despite wanting the law to pass to secure Haredi support ahead of elections.

Internal disputes within the Haredi political factions have intensified, with some accusing Deri of pushing a legally unviable law to deflect internal criticism and shift blame to the Supreme Court. Moshe Gafni reportedly opposed the law, favoring more modest legislation, but was overruled by Shas leadership. A Shas official defended Deri, saying he sought solutions based on legal counsel and that the Supreme Court has become politicized.

This public airing of grievances reflects growing frustration within the Haredi community over the failure to secure a stable draft exemption and the political maneuvering surrounding it, just weeks before upcoming elections.