The Israeli army extends the service of its soldiers amid continuing controversy over the conscription law (French)
The Israeli Channel 12 said on Saturday that the Israeli army had ordered thousands of regular soldiers to serve for an additional 4 months, in order to deal with the continuation of the war on the Gaza Strip.
The channel explained that the army’s move comes as an attempt to circumvent the state’s inability to extend regular service for soldiers, amid the controversy over the conscription law, as the order issued by successive governments granting Haredi Jews exemption from military service in exchange for studying the Torah in schools is supposed to expire at the end of this month. Jewish religious.
The Supreme Court gave Benjamin Netanyahu's government until March 31 to reach an understanding regarding the recruitment of the Haredim and their obligation to serve in the military.
According to Israeli regulations, the period of compulsory military service is 32 months for males over the age of 18 and 24 months for women, and anyone who refuses to do so may face imprisonment for up to 200 days, in addition to social pressure.
Last February, the occupation army announced its intention to extend military service in the future with the aim of increasing the number of reserve soldiers.
In light of the war on the Gaza Strip, Haredi leaders renewed their opposition to recruitment into the Israeli army. The participation of this group in the army is one of the most sensitive and tense issues in Israeli society, as secularists oppose religious Jews not being recruited and gaining advantages beyond what they offer to Israel, according to what they say.
The number of Haredim who can currently be assigned to serve in the Israeli army is 157,000 people, but the occupation does not recruit them and they are considered - according to the law - to be deserters from military service.
Source: Al Jazeera