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Time of India
an hour ago
- Politics
- Time of India
Netanyahu's governing coalition is fracturing. Here's what it means for Israel and Gaza
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 war 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 war 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. Live Events Netanyahu is on trial for alleged corruption, and critics say he wants to hang on to power so that he can use his office as a bully pulpit to rally supporters and lash out against prosecutors and judges. That makes him all the more vulnerable to the whims of his coalition allies. Here is a look at Netanyahu's political predicament and some potential scenarios: The ultra-Orthodox are key partners Netanyahu, Israel 's longest serving leader, has long relied on the ultra-Orthodox parties to prop up his governments. Without UTJ, his coalition holds just 61 out of parliament's 120 seats. That means Netanyahu will be more susceptible to pressure from other elements within his government, especially far-right parties who strongly oppose ending the war in Gaza. The political shake up isn't likely to completely derail ceasefire talks, but it could complicate how flexible Netanyahu can be in his concessions to Hamas. A second ultra-Orthodox party is also considering bolting the government over the draft issue. That would give Netanyahu a minority in parliament and make governing almost impossible. The ultra-Orthodox military exemptions have divided Israel A decades-old arrangement by Israel's first prime minister granted hundreds of ultra-Orthodox men exemptions from compulsory Israeli service. Over the years, those exemptions ballooned into the thousands and created deep divisions in Israel. The ultra-Orthodox say their men are serving the country by studying sacred Jewish texts and preserving centuries' old tradition. They fear that mandatory enlistment will dilute adherents' connection to the faith. But most Jewish Israelis see the exemption as unfair, as well as the generous government stipends granted to many ultra-Orthodox men who study instead of work throughout adulthood. That bitterness has only worsened during nearly two years of war. The politically powerful ultra-Orthodox parties have long had outsize influence in Israel's fragmented political system and used that status to extract major concessions for their constituents. But a court last year ruled Netanyahu's government must enlist the ultra-Orthodox so long as there is no new law codifying the exemptions. Netanyahu's coalition has been trying to find a path forward on a new law. But his base is largely opposed to granting sweeping draft exemptions and a key lawmaker has stood in the way of giving the ultra-Orthodox a law they can get behind, prompting their exit. The political shake up comes during Gaza ceasefire talks The resignations don't take effect for 48 hours, so Netanyahu will likely spend the next two days seeking a compromise. But that won't be easy because the Supreme Court has said the old system of exemptions amounts to discrimination against the secular majority. That does not mean the government will collapse. Netanyahu's opponents cannot submit a motion to dissolve parliament until the end of the year because of procedural reasons. And with parliament's summer recess beginning later this month, the parties could use that time to find a compromise and return to the government. Cabinet Minister Miki Zohar, from Netanyahu's Likud party, said he was hopeful the religious party could be coaxed back to the coalition. "God willing, everything will be fine," he said. A Likud spokesman did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Once the departures become official, Netanyahu will have a razor-thin majority. The far-right parties within it could threaten to leave the coalition, further weakening him, if he gives in to too many of Hamas' demands. Hamas wants a permanent end to the war as part of any ceasefire deal. Netanyahu's hard-line partners are open to a temporary truce, but say the war cannot end until Hamas is destroyed. If they or any other party leave the coalition, Netanyahu will have a minority government, and that will make it almost impossible to govern and likely lead to its collapse. But he could still find ways to approve a ceasefire deal, including with support from the political opposition. Israel may be on the path toward early elections Netanyahu could seek to shore up his coalition by appeasing the far-right and agreeing for now to just a partial, 60-day ceasefire with Hamas, promising his governing partners that he can still resume the war once it expires. But Netanyahu is balancing those political constraints with pressure from the Trump administration, which is pressing Israel to wrap up the war. Gayil Talshir, a political scientist at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem , said she expects Netanyahu to work during those 60 days to shift the narrative away from the draft exemptions and the war in Gaza, toward something that could potentially give him an electoral boost - like an expansion of U.S.-led normalization deals between Israel and Arab or Muslim countries. Once the 60-day ceasefire is up, Netanyahu could bend to U.S. pressure to end the war and bring home the remaining hostages in Gaza - a move most Israelis would support. Elections are currently scheduled for October 2026. But if Netanyahu feels like he has improved his political standing, he may want to call elections before then.
Irish Times
an hour ago
- Politics
- Irish Times
Binyamin Netanyahu's coalition in jeopardy as ultra-Orthodox party quits government
The ultra-Orthodox United Torah Judaism (UTJ) party has resigned from prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu 's coalition, leaving him with a wafer-thin majority of 61 lawmakers in the 120-seat Knesset parliament. On Thursday a second ultra-Orthodox party, Shas , is expected to follow suit, leaving Mr Netanyahu with a minority coalition of 50 seats. The government is not expected to fall immediately, but a minority coalition will not be able to function for long without Mr Netanyahu calling early elections. UTJ quit the coalition after Mr Netanyahu failed to present a Bill that would enshrine in law an exemption from military service for ultra-Orthodox yeshiva religious seminary students. The 21-month Gaza war , the longest in Israel's history, has caused a serious rift in Mr Netanyahu's coalition. READ MORE Many of the voters of the right-wing parties have already served hundreds of days of army reserve duty, causing a huge strain on families and businesses. The ultra-Orthodox parties, in contrast, serve a constituency that, with a few exceptions, does not serve in the army. Calls for a more equitable sharing of the burden have been rebuffed by ultra-Orthodox rabbis and political leaders, who fear that military service will be the first step towards the adoption of a more secular lifestyle. The next elections must be held by October 2026. Even if Shas also leaves the government, the two ultra-Orthodox parties are reportedly uninterested in toppling the coalition at this juncture and forcing new elections, realising that any future coalition will also be unlikely to agree to authorise draft dodging. The high court has already ruled that the ultra-Orthodox, with the exception of a small group of exceptional Torah scholars, must serve in the military like all Jewish males. [ Israeli pledge to let more aid into Gaza will be kept under 'close watch', EU says Opens in new window ] A range of sanctions are being mulled against the draft dodgers, including ending welfare payments, withholding driving licences and preventing travel abroad. But many of the ultra-Orthodox claim they would rather go to prison than enlist in the army. The upcoming Knesset summer recess, which starts on July 27th, will give Mr Netanyahu three months to try to come up with a compromise while ruling with a minority government. Alternatively, he could try to conjure up another reason to go to elections, realising that going to the polls having failed to draft the ultra-Orthodox will not be a vote winner. [ Future of Israel's plan to force Gazans to southern city hangs in balance Opens in new window ] Mr Netanyahu also faces the prospect of the total disintegration of his coalition if he clinches a Gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal that prompts the two far-right parties to leave his government. Such a scenario is a distinct possibility as both parties have warned that ending the war without what they term 'total victory' over Hamas will force them to work to topple the government.
Yahoo
8 hours ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
United Torah Judaism announces decision to quit gov't, coalition
The Sephardi haredi party Shas remained mum on Monday about whether or not it would join UTJ. The United Torah Judaism (UTJ) announced on Tuesday its decision to quit the government and the coalition, according to a statement released by the party's two factions, the Lithuanian Degel Hatorah and Hassidic Agudat Yisrael. Degel Hatorah's sole representative in the government, Deputy Transportation Minister Uri Makleb, submitted his resignation on Tuesday, along with MK Moshe Gafni, who resigned as head of the Knesset Finance Committee, making the decision official. MK Yakov Asher resigned as head of Knesset Interior and Environment Protection Committee. In a dramatic political development earlier on Monday, the Lithuanian-haredi Degel Hatorah MKs announced their resignation after the party's two spiritual leaders, Rabbi Dov Lando and Rabbi Moshe Hillel Hirsch, ordered the party to leave the government over its failure to pass a bill to exempt yeshiva students from IDF service. A few hours after Degel Hatorah's announcement, at approximately 9 p.m., a series of reports emerged regarding a breakthrough in negotiations, which were conducted in Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee chairman MK Yuli Edelstein's office. The reports could not be corroborated by press time, but if true, the bill would likely still require the approval of Rabbis Lando and Hirsch before Degel Hatorah's threat is removed. The rabbis' orders already came on Sunday evening, but the party decided to give Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu one more day to try to have a version of a bill published. Lando wrote, 'Since the governing authorities are showing intentions to increasingly restrict the lives of Torah learners in various ways, through attempts to demean and crush them – and repeatedly fail to uphold their commitments to legally regulate the status of yeshiva students and dear Torah scholars, the crown of creation and the secret of its existence – it is therefore my opinion that participation in the government and coalition should be immediately terminated, including resigning without delay from all related roles. May God deliver us swiftly.' Hirsch added his signature on Monday morning. United Torah Judaism (UTJ) said earlier on Monday that it expected to leave the coalition within the next 24 hours if a draft proposal of a law regarding haredi enlistment was not presented. "In coordination with the great rabbis of Israel, it was decided to wait a few more hours tonight before publishing the statement, in order to provide one last opportunity for a resolution. This was done with the understanding that United Torah Judaism had not originally sought to dissolve the government, but that the failure to meet the agreements left them with no other option," Lando's office said. Although the directive was only directed at UTJ's Lithuanian faction, the members of its hassidic faction, Agudat Yisrael, will likely follow suit, according to a source. The Sephardi haredi party Shas remained silent on Monday about whether or not it would join UTJ. KAN reported on Sunday evening that party chairman MK Arye Deri had threatened Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that Shas might also withdraw from the coalition before the end of the Knesset summer session on July 27, if the party saw that no draft law had advanced. Even if both haredi parties leave the coalition, the government will not fall immediately. In order for it to fall, either Netanyahu must call an election himself, or the Knesset must pass a bill to disperse itself, a process that is unlikely to happen while the Knesset is on summer recess. Still, if the two parties' combined 18 votes officially leave the government, the prime minister's ability to implement policy will be severely hindered. Opposition party members on Monday morning sought to gather Shas's support for such a bill, but Shas refused, according to a Channel 12 report. KAN reported that for now, the parties will not support dissolving the Knesset before the summer recess The announcement by Degel Hatorah served as a new peak in a pressure campaign against Netanyahu. The party nearly supported an opposition preliminary vote on a bill proposal to disperse the Knesset on the eve of June 12, a day before the Israeli attack against Iran, but backed down after reaching agreements with Edelstein. It later became apparent that Edelstein and other negotiators were aware of the impending attack, and backed down in part because of it. The June 12 agreements stipulated that an increasing quota of haredi draftees would enlist annually, with the ultimate goal of enlistment of 50% of each graduating class within five years. The bill included a series of sanctions that would apply to draft dodgers gradually, with some relatively light sanctions applying immediately and heavier sanctions added at six-month increments. Financial sanctions would also be applied to yeshivot that do not reach draft quotas. In the meantime, current sanctions against draft dodgers – which include blocking funds to yeshivot and the cessation of state-subsidized daycare – would be lifted. The head of the Finance Ministry's Budget Department, Yoav Gardos, wrote in a letter to Frenkel-Shor on July 2 that the agreement would actually serve as an incentive not to enlist or work, and in effect perpetuate the issues that it had set out to solve. Gardos pointed out that the idea of quotas may already be a nonstarter, since there was no a specific requirement for individual haredim to enlist. In addition, Gardos explained that the immediate sanctions would not significantly affect many young haredi yeshiva students. In the meantime, the law's passage will free up funds to yeshivot and to parents, which are currently frozen because of students' draft evasion. The previous exemption for haredi men officially ended with a High Court ruling in June 2024, and since no new bill has passed, the current legal status requires the enlistment of all of the approximately 80,000 eligible haredi men. Attorney-General Gali Baharav-Miara has held monthly meetings since then to ensure that the High Court ruling is being implemented. In a letter to Netanyahu on Monday, Baharav-Miara wrote that the government was legally required to use more tools in its power to enforce the law against draft-dodgers. She wrote that the fact that the government was increasing the burden on some parts of the population while not doing all in its power to recruit other parts was a 'severe' violation of the constitutional principle of equality.
LeMonde
9 hours ago
- Politics
- LeMonde
Israeli ultra-Orthodox party quits the ruling coalition
An Israeli ultra-Orthodox Jewish party has come under fire for its decision to quit the ruling coalition in a long-running struggle over military service exemptions as the army looks for manpower for Gaza. The departure of the United Torah Judaism (UTJ) party leaves Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government with the slenderest of majorities − 61 of the 120 seats in parliament. The conscription of ultra-Orthodox Jews is a highly contentious issue for Israeli society and Netanyahu's government. Under an arrangement dating back to the founding of the state of Israel in 1948, the ultra-Orthodox have been effectively exempted from military service as long as they dedicate themselves full-time to religious studies. Ultra-Orthodox parties have campaigned for decades for the exemptions to continue, but their demand has become increasingly unpopular among other sections of Israeli society after more than 21 months of war with Hamas in Gaza. Late on Monday, July 14, the UTJ party said it was leaving the coalition over the government's failure to secure the exemptions. Its defection takes 48 hours to come into effect. The announcement that three more Israeli soldiers had been killed in Gaza on Monday, taking the army's overall losses there to 458, fueled criticism of the UTJ's position. "Even as this news was already on the desks of the prime minister and coalition leaders, they continued with full force to promote the draft-dodging law, without thinking about the fighters in the field who need more partners to share the burden with them," opposition lawmaker Avigdor Lieberman posted on X. After the first of two UTJ factions announced it would quit the government, former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett wrote: "These politicians are trying to prevent young Orthodox Jews from joining their heroic peers who are defending the people of Israel with their bodies." Netanyahu, visiting a military base on Tuesday where ultra-Orthodox troops are stationed, called to "mobilize all forces of the Jewish society in order to truly preserve our state and protect our people." Discussions aimed at amending the conscription law have intensified in Israel in recent months, putting the government under increasing pressure. Formed in December 2022, the governing coalition hinges on an alliance between Netanyahu's right-wing Likud, far-right parties and those representing the ultra-Orthodox. Ultra-Orthodox party Shas said it would meet on Wednesday for "a crucial discussion on the continuation of Shas's mandate in government" following "serious and unacceptable attacks on the status of Torah scholars" with regard to military service. If Shas too left the coalition, Netanyahu's government would be left without a majority.
Straits Times
10 hours ago
- Politics
- Straits Times
Israel's Netanyahu under mounting political pressure after party quits
Find out what's new on ST website and app. Six members of the United Torah Judaism party handed in resignation letters overnight, leaving Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu with a razor-thin majority in Parliament. JERUSALEM - A religious party has quit Israel's ruling coalition in a dispute over military service, leaving Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu with a razor-thin majority in Parliament but still enough political support to secure a potential Gaza ceasefire. Six members of the United Torah Judaism (UTJ) party handed in resignation letters overnight from posts in parliamentary committees and government ministries, in protest against lawmakers' failure to guarantee future exemption from military conscription for ultra-Orthodox religious students. Shas, a second ultra-Orthodox party closely allied with UTJ, may follow and leave the government with no parliament majority. The UTJ lawmakers said their walkout would come into effect after 48 hours, giving Mr Netanyahu two days to try and resolve the crisis which has dogged his coalition for months. Even if that fails, Parliament goes on summer break at the end of July, which would give the prime minister a further three months to seek a solution before any loss of his majority could threaten his position. Mr Netanyahu is also facing pressure from far-right parties in his coalition over ceasefire talks under way in Qatar. The indirect negotiations between Israel and Palestinian militant group Hamas aim to halt fighting in Gaza for 60 days to allow half of remaining hostages held by Hamas to be released and aid to flow into the battered enclave. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore Las Vegas Sands' new development part of S'pore's broader, more ambitious transformation: PM Wong Singapore Economic headwinds do not dampen outlook for new Marina Bay development: Las Vegas Sands president Business MAS records net profit of $19.7 billion, fuelled by investment gains Singapore Man charged with attempted murder of woman at Kallang Wave Mall Singapore CDL's long-time director Philip Yeo to depart after boardroom feud Singapore Ex-cleaner jailed over safety lapses linked to guard's death near 1-Altitude rooftop bar Life The Violinist, Singapore's first animated historical film, set for August 2026 release Singapore 'Nobody deserves to be alone': Why Mummy and Acha have fostered over 20 children in the past 22 years It would also open a further phase of talks on ending the war entirely. National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich want Israel to press on with the war, but Mr Netanyahu would still be likely to have enough Cabinet votes to secure a ceasefire without them. 'As soon as the right deal is on the table, the prime minister will be able to pass it through,' a close aide to Mr Netanyahu, Mr Topaz Luk, told Army Radio on July 15. Military exemptions Israelis have become increasingly weary of the 21-month war in Gaza, which began with a surprise attack by Hamas on Oct 7, 2023 that led to Israel's single deadliest day with 1,200 killed and 251 taken hostage by the Palestinian militants. Israel's subsequent offensive against Hamas has since killed more than 58,000 Palestinians, according to health officials, displaced almost the entire population of Gaza, led to a humanitarian crisis and left much of the enclave in ruins. It has also exacted Israel's highest military death toll in decades, with around 450 soldiers killed so far in Gaza combat. This has added fuel to an already explosive debate over a new conscription bill at the centre of Mr Netanyahu's political crisis. Ultra-Orthodox seminary students have long been exempt from mandatory military service. Many Israelis are angered by what they see as an unfair burden carried by the mainstream who serve. Ultra-Orthodox Jewish leaders say full-time devotion to holy scriptures study is sacrosanct and fear their young men will steer away from religious life if they are drafted into the military. In 2024, the Supreme Court ordered an end to the exemption. Parliament has been trying to work out a new conscription Bill, which has so far failed to meet UTJ demands. REUTERS
