"We need a draft so that haredim don’t drift off and evolve into a separate people not just distinct from, but separated from, the rest of Jewry. We need each other too much for that to happen."
He previously served as the head of the Lithuanian 'Ponevezh Yeshiva' for 46 years, and has been influential in draft dodging among yeshiva students.
“There are all kinds of talk about agreements behind the committee’s back. There is no such thing as behind the back of the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee,” Edelstein said.
The Prime Minister's Office responded to the remarks, criticizing them as "unacceptable and deserving of complete condemnation."
There is a growing sense of urgency, but the "feeling" in the party is that at the moment there is no concrete proposal on the table to disperse the Knesset.
"What do we have without our Torah? Why did we come here—to become secular? If a draft notice arrives, tear it up. Do you have a toilet at home? Flush it down,” Yosef said.
The course certified 26 soldiers as technicians, who will serve at the hangar and ensure operational support for IAF fighter jets and their weapons systems.
Those who do not enlist should be designated as deserters, with all the economic sanctions that it entails.
If you care about Israel’s future—and I know you do—then it’s time to act. Meet with the rabbis. Challenge them. Urge them to find solutions.
When it comes to ultra-Orthodox (haredi) military service, the change within the haredi community will come from the bottom up.