Yehadut HaTorah Chair Goldknopf Says Netanyahu Abandons Draft Law After Arrests Bill Fails

Yehadut HaTorah chairman and Knesset member Yitzhak Goldknopf sharply criticized Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu following his admission that the temporary arrests law failed to achieve its goals. Goldknopf stated that Netanyahu's acknowledgment only confirmed what had been clear from the start: the arrests law was ineffective and exposed Netanyahu's true intentions regarding the military draft issue. According to Goldknopf, Netanyahu does not intend to regulate the status of yeshiva students nor to advance a draft law, which was the reason Yehadut HaTorah left the government.

Goldknopf described the arrests law as a political spin that solved nothing and regretted its enactment. The law was initially promoted by Netanyahu as a means to reduce tensions around the detention of ultra-Orthodox draft candidates and to increase enlistment numbers. However, in a recent closed discussion, Netanyahu admitted the law "did not succeed," and promised there would be no such law in the next government. Instead, he pledged that after the elections, a broad national government would be formed to pass a comprehensive draft law meeting the Israel Defense Forces' needs.

Ahead of the elections, Goldknopf set a clear red line, stating Yehadut HaTorah would only join a government that fully regulates the status of yeshiva students and Torah scholars. Despite Netanyahu's tough rhetoric that those not studying Torah would be drafted or imprisoned, Goldknopf dismissed these as political spin accompanying the failed arrests law.

Netanyahu’s admission also sparked criticism from within his own Likud party and the opposition. Likud MK Dan Illouz accused Netanyahu of repeatedly yielding to unreasonable ultra-Orthodox demands and insulting the public’s intelligence. Former Likud minister Gilad Erdan rejected Netanyahu’s promises on the draft and unity, declaring he would not join a narrow government and warning that such promises were no longer credible. These developments highlight a deep trust crisis between Netanyahu and various coalition and opposition factions, with the draft issue remaining a central political dispute in Israel.