Opposition leader Naftali Bennett said Monday night that in a government he leads, anyone who does not serve in the IDF would receive no state funding, according to i24NEWS. Bennett reiterated that ultra-Orthodox party leaders Deri, Gafni, and Netanyahu 'are one' and must be excluded from government.
Opposition leader Naftali Bennett on Monday night reiterated his call to exclude the leaders of the ultra-Orthodox parties from any future government and added a new threat: in a government he leads, those who do not enlist in the IDF would receive no state funding. The statement, reported by i24NEWS, came as the coalition continues to debate the conscription law.
Bennett specifically named Shas leader Aryeh Deri, UTJ chairman Moshe Gafni, and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, saying they 'are one.' He has previously argued that the three are 'generators of draft-dodging' and must be kept out of government, as The Zioneer reported on Sunday.
The remarks follow a broader campaign by Bennett against the government's handling of IDF conscription. Earlier this month, he criticized the government for dismissing IDF Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi and warned it was 'dismantling the IDF from within.' He also called a proposed conscription framework by former IDF chief Gadi Eisenkot a 'crazy mistake,' arguing it would be exploited by the ultra-Orthodox parties.
The statement adds to the political pressure on the coalition over the sensitive issue of ultra-Orthodox military service, a key fault line in Israeli politics.
2 developments
Source and signal
- Open-source intake