Hundreds of arrest warrants were filed in the past few days for haredi
teens who failed to report to military induction centers when called up,
Israeli news media has reported. But the army reportedly said that it does not believe the police will act on those warrants.
Hundreds Of Arrest Warrants Issued For Haredi Draft Dodgers
Shmarya Rosenberg • FailedMessiah.com
Hundreds of arrest warrants were filed in the past few days for haredi teens who failed to report to military induction centers when called up, Israeli news media has reported.
But the army reportedly said that it does not believe the police will act on those warrants.
Rumors are rife in haredi communities that mass arrests of haredi draft dodgers will happen – but not until after Passover.
Following orders from their rabbis, many haredi teens say they would rather go to jail than serve in the military. many apparently believe their rabbis’ rhetoric and think their rabbis will go to prison with them.
The issue of drafting haredim came to the fore in February 2012 when the High Court of Justice ruled that the law which granted all full time haredi yeshiva students exemptions from military service essentially for life was unconstitutional.
The government was supposed to write and pass a new law that met the High Court’s requirements. But this would essentially end haredi draft exemptions, something haredi leaders threatened would cause a civil war.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sees haredi political parties as his natural allies and counts on their support to keep him in power. Drafting haredim under his watch would likely end that alliance, leaving Netanyahu vulnerable to being replaced by a centrist or leftist prime minister.