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Ultra-Orthodox party poised to quit Israeli government over conscription dispute
Israel’s government has been thrown into turmoil by an ultra-Orthodox party’s threat to dissolve the ruling coalition amid a dispute about compulsory military service.
Senior rabbis have instructed their representatives in the United Torah Judaism alliance, which holds seven seats in Israel’s parliament, to pull their support for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s coalition government, the DPA news agency and Israeli media reported.
The alliance’s withdrawal would leave Netanyahu’s right-wing, religious government with just 61 seats in the 120-member parliament.
The split has come amid a debate over compulsory military service for Israel’s ultra-Orthodox minority, known as the Haredim. The ultra-Orthodox have for decades been granted an exemption from compulsory military service, but that exemption lapsed last year.
Netanyahu’s government has not passed a law exempting the ultra-Orthodox from the draft, despite pressure from the community to do so. Many ultra-Orthodox Jews see military service as incompatible with their beliefs.
The Haredi population in Israel is currently around 13% of the total population, projected to reach 16% by 2030.
Israeli army promotes officer accused of ordering attack on people with white flag in Gaza: Report
An unnamed Israeli military officer who soldiers say issued a shoot-to-kill order against two people carrying a white flag in Gaza has been promoted to the rank of a battalion commanding officer, according to Israel’s Haaretz newspaper.
The publication reported on the incident in December last year through an op-ed written by an Israeli soldier, Haim Har-Zahav, who said he witnessed it in the so-called Netzarim Corridor in central Gaza earlier that year.
The order to shoot was countermanded by another officer, and the men who were waving their hands above their heads were not shot. Following the publication of the op-ed, Israeli military police called on Har-Zahav to give a statement. But they have not summoned the accused officer for questioning, Haaretz reported, instead awarding him command of an infantry battalion.
Israeli arms exports hit all-time high last year: Ministry
Israel exported a record-high $14.7bn worth of arms in 2024, according to its Defence Ministry. Nearly half of the weapons sales involved missile, rocket and air defence systems.
Defence Minister Israel Katz attributed the uptick to the Israeli military’s combat “successes” in Gaza, Lebanon, Yemen and elsewhere.
At the same time, numerous states, including traditional allies such as Spain, Italy, Canada and France, have suspended or sharply limited arms sales to Israel due to its ongoing attacks in Gaza.
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