Ahead of a week of Knesset committee debates on the draft-dodger arrest freeze and the Torah Study Basic Law, Government Secretary Yossi Fuchs and Defense Minister Israel Katz will issue letters tonight and tomorrow explaining the need for an emergency order halting arrests of draft evaders, according to political reporter Shalom Stein.
Ahead of a legislative push expected this week, Government Secretary Yossi Fuchs and Defense Minister Israel Katz will issue letters tonight and Saturday outlining the necessity for an emergency order (horat sha'a) to freeze arrests of draft dodgers from the Haredi yeshiva sector, according to political correspondent Shalom Stein (N12). The letters are a procedural step before the legislative text is formally submitted to the Knesset's Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, where deliberations on the freeze bill are scheduled to begin, alongside parallel discussions on the Basic Law: Torah Study in the Knesset Committee.
The move follows weeks of coalition coordination on two flagship bills demanded by the Haredi parties — the draft-evader arrest freeze and the Torah Study Basic Law. As The Zioneer reported on June 21, coalition leaders had agreed to pass both through three readings before the Knesset disperses. The letters from Fuchs and Katz aim to lay the groundwork by establishing the security justification for halting arrests, a requirement reportedly needed to satisfy legal and procedural standards.
The timeline is tight: coalition sources have indicated that the two bills are seen as linked, with Haredi lawmakers warning they will not support other coalition legislation if the daycare funding bill — a separate Haredi demand — does not also advance. The letters are expected to trigger the formal legislative process while the government navigates internal disagreements over the scope and speed of reforms.
5 developments
- DevelopingGovernment secretary warns that yeshiva student arrests could lead to civil war
- DevelopingNewspaper editorial urges freeze on yeshiva student arrests until after elections
- DevelopingReport: Deri pushing a 'thin' draft law to halt yeshiva student arrests
- DevelopingPM's office: coalition has the votes for Deri's bill to stop draft-evader arrests
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