Haredi Evasion Soars as Court Deadline Nears • Jewish Breaking News

In a meeting of government officials last week led by Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara, the issue of Haredi enlistment was raised amid a looming deadline set by the High Court of Justice to present a draft enforcement plan. In a November ruling, the court ordered a new plan to be devised that includes criminal penalties for draft evasion as well as financial sanctions. This comes as new data show that while Haredi enlistment has edged up slightly, draft evasion has risen sharply, to 71,000 draft dodgers, 80 percent of them Haredi.

The reasons for the increase include the creation of military service tracks designed specifically to accommodate the religious needs of Haredi soldiers within the IDF, the Oct. 7 attack and its aftermath, the suspension of government funding for Haredi students, and stricter enforcement through random arrests and airport detentions.

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However, draft evasion has increased faster than enlistment, and some argue that the expectation within the Haredi community that sanctions would be lifted, coupled with inconsistent and ineffective enforcement, undermines enforcement. For example, arrests and detentions occur at far higher rates in secular neighborhoods than Haredi ones. In addition, police have not been cooperating with the IDF, sometimes releasing detainees after random arrests.

Officials at the meeting pushed back on a proposed draft exemption law, warning that it would discourage enlistment. They argued that enforcing the draft was a matter of national security, as well as relieving the burden on those serving, including reservists who have been called up to serve multiple times throughout the war.

The meeting concluding with the following recommendations:

• Ensuring fair and effective draft enforcement
• Decreasing the time from draft evasion to a criminal offense from 540 days to 365 days
• Increasing detention sentences from 20 days to 35 days

The problem with the police requiring but being unable to obtain approvals to enter Haredi neighborhoods to conduct operations was not resolved. Police pushed back on the criticism, saying they focus their efforts on fighting actual crime and terrorism, a heavy workload that leaves little time for draft enforcement.