Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s coalition government is once again in danger of collapsing after an ultra-Orthodox party made its intentions to leave the government public. The group is not large enough to immediately cause a collapse, but the concern from the Netanyahu camp is more defections will follow.
The faction left the government over a proposal to end military exemptions for religious students. The orthodox communities typically support conflict, in general, yet their children are largely exempt due to being “religious students.”
Netanyahu’s governing coalition is fracturing. What does it mean for Gaza? – National– globalnews.ca
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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government suffered a serious blow on Tuesday when an ultra-Orthodox party announced it was bolting the coalition.
While this doesn’t immediately threaten Netanyahu’s rule, it could set in motion his government’s demise, although that could still be months away. It also could complicate efforts to halt the conflict in Gaza.
United Torah Judaism’s two factions said they were leaving the government because of disagreements over a proposed law that would end broad exemptions for religious students from enlistment into the military.
Military service is compulsory for most Jewish Israelis, and the issue of exemptions has long divided the country. Those rifts have only widened since the start of the conflict in Gaza as demand for military manpower has grown and hundreds of soldiers have been killed.
The threat to the government “looks more serious than ever,” said Shuki Friedman, vice president of the Jewish People Policy Institute, a Jerusalem think tank.
