Moti Babchik Criticizes Lack of Unity Among Ultra-Orthodox Parties Amid Draft Law Disputes

Moti Babchik, a senior member of Agudat Yisrael and the Gur Hasidic dynasty, criticized the growing tensions and lack of coordination among ultra-Orthodox parties in a radio interview on Monday. He said that if the parties had acted with a unified stance, different outcomes could have been achieved regarding the ongoing battles over the military draft law and the law freezing arrests.

Babchik announced that the Gur Hasidic community will hold a protest rally that evening outside Prison 10 in response to the detention of a yeshiva student from their community who failed to report for military service. The event is expected to be attended by the Gur Rebbe and thousands of participants, following a previous rally estimated at around 20,000 people.

He rejected claims by Shas MK Yinon Azulai, who suggested that some in Agudat Yisrael were working against advancing draft legislation. Babchik emphasized that from the start of the Knesset term, he worked alongside Shas and Degel HaTorah representatives with former Defense Minister Yoav Galant, maintaining a firm opposition to sanctions on Torah students. When discussions continued without his involvement, he directly communicated the Gur Rebbe’s red lines to former Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee chairman Yuli Edelstein.

Regarding the law freezing arrests, Babchik acknowledged that it likely would not pass constitutional review by the Supreme Court but explained that ultra-Orthodox MKs supported it in the Knesset because they lacked the political ability to oppose a law framed as preventing arrests. He reiterated his criticism of the ultra-Orthodox parties’ disunity, stating that unified coordination could have led to different results.