Israeli Parliament Legal Advisor Demands Haredi MKs Declare Relatives Under Arrest Orders Ahead of Yeshiva Exemption Vote

Ahead of the Knesset vote on a bill granting yeshiva students exemption from arrest and prosecution until January 2027, the Knesset legal advisor, Attorney Sagit Afik, has ruled that Haredi members of parliament must disclose if they have relatives subject to arrest orders for draft evasion or desertion. The bill, which is scheduled for its second and third readings this afternoon, would provide immunity to thousands of draft-dodging yeshiva students. For example, Shas party leader Aryeh Deri has three grandchildren classified as draft evaders.

Afik emphasized that according to previous Knesset Ethics Committee decisions, MPs with a personal interest in a matter on the agenda must declare it, and in some cases, additional restrictions may apply depending on the severity of the personal interest. However, these rules do not prohibit voting in the plenum, where replacing an MP is not feasible.

Separately, Attorney Miri Frenkel Shor, legal advisor to the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, criticized the bill in a legal opinion, calling it "unconstitutional" and discriminatory, as it creates a special legal regime for yeshiva students that conflicts with the principle of equality before the law. She warned that the bill's provisions to freeze arrests and halt legal proceedings against draft-dodging yeshiva students raise concerns about conflicts of interest.

Given that tens of thousands of yeshiva students face arrest warrants, the legal advisors stress the importance of full disclosure by MKs with relatives involved in such cases before participating in the debate or vote. Despite these concerns, MPs may vote after making the required disclosures.