Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s right-wing coalition used its final days before parliamentary dissolution to push through a slate of contentious legislation that critics say weakens judicial oversight, favors allied media outlets, and shores up support among ultra-Orthodox coalition partners ahead of Israel’s election, now set for October.
Among the most contested measures, the Knesset voted 58-54 on July 14 to freeze arrests and prosecutions of ultra-Orthodox men evading military conscription, a suspension expected to last at least six months. The passage came despite warnings from legal officials that the measure was unbalanced and would do little to boost ultra-Orthodox enlistment amid the military’s severe manpower shortage and drew anger from bereaved families and army reservists.
Netanyahu himself left the chamber before the vote after opposition lawmakers heckled him as he entered and did not return to cast a ballot. Deputy Foreign Minister Sharren Haskel, of the New Hope-United Right faction, resigned her post in protest after the bill passed, while two Likud lawmakers broke ranks to vote against it.
The coalition is also advancing a quasi-constitutional Basic Law declaring Torah study a foundational value of the Jewish people and the state, a move ultra-Orthodox parties have long sought as cover for continued blanket exemptions from military service. Its final passage has been complicated by a dispute between Haredi factions and the government over provisions concerning Sabbath broadcasting.
The legislative push comes after Israel’s High Court ruled in 2024 that the government had no legal basis to keep exempting yeshiva students from conscription, a ruling that has strained Netanyahu’s coalition ever since amid the military’s ongoing multifront operations.
Analysts see the flurry of legislation as an effort to lock in coalition loyalty regardless of the election outcome. Hebrew University political scientist Reuven Hazan has described Netanyahu’s strategy as playing a long game, positioning himself as the only leader capable of delivering what his coalition partners need in case he gets another chance to form a government. In short, Mr. Netanyahu, Israel’s longest-serving prime minister, continues to preside over one of the most turbulent periods in the country’s history.
