- The Israel Defense Forces sent preliminary notices to call up 1,000 Haredi men
- They are the first of 3,000 who will be recruited in the coming weeks
- A recent Supreme Court ruling held that ultra-Orthodox men are not exempt
Israel has called up ultra-Orthodox Jews to fight in its army for the first time amid fears the Middle East conflict could escalate.
The Israel Defense Forces have sent out preliminary notices calling up 1,000 men from the devout Haredi community to reinforce the ranks of the army, the first of 3,000 who will be recruited in the coming weeks.
This follows a ruling by Israel’s Supreme Court that ultra-Orthodox men can no longer be exempt from military service, ending an arrangement that has been in place since Israel’s creation in 1948.
The move comes amid rising tensions in the region after the IDF carried out airstrikes against Houthi rebel targets in Yemen, a day after a drone launched by the group hit Tel Aviv.
The recruitment of ultra-Orthodox men is a contentious issue in Israel, and Haredi leaders fiercely resist any efforts to recruit young men; some rabbis even urge anyone who receives draft orders to burn them.
Israel has called up ultra-Orthodox Jews to fight in its army for the first time amid fears the Middle East conflict could escalate. Pictured: An ultra-Orthodox Jewish Israeli soldier from the Netzah Yehuda Battalion poses for a photograph with his father during a swearing-in ceremony in Jerusalem, where graduates receive an assault rifle and a Bible
The move comes amid rising tensions in the region after the IDF carried out airstrikes against Houthi rebel targets in Yemen on Saturday.
Many ultra-Orthodox Jews, who traditionally attend religious schools or yeshivas, believe that military service is incompatible with their way of life.
However, with Israeli troops still fighting in Gaza more than nine months after the Hamas terror attack on October 7, there has been growing pressure from the military and secular Israelis to share the burden of military service.
Israelis are legally required to serve in the military from the age of 18 for at least 24 months and some 300,000 citizens have been called up for reserve duty since October 7.
The government has said it will have to extend military service for conscripts and reservists to meet the country’s security needs.
The IDF said anyone who ignores various recruitment orders could be prevented from leaving the country or even face jail time.
This comes after an apartment block in Tel Aviv was attacked by a Houthi drone on Friday, killing a 50-year-old man and injuring eight others.
On Saturday evening, after the attacks, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said his country would defend itself “by all means.”
On Saturday evening, following the attacks, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said his country would defend itself “by all means.” Pictured: Netanyahu on Saturday
Israel responded by launching a series of airstrikes in Yemen – the first time it has directly attacked the country – which Houthi-linked media outlets said killed six people and wounded more than 80.
Israeli forces said they intercepted a ballistic missile fired in retaliation yesterday.
Meanwhile, Lebanese militant group Hezbollah fired a barrage of rockets and drones from southern Lebanon, raising fears of a wider regional confrontation.
Saudi Arabia yesterday called for restraint following the Israeli attack on the Yemeni port city of Hodeidah.
In a statement, the Saudi Foreign Ministry said the attack “aggravates the current tension in the region and halts ongoing efforts to end the war in Gaza.”
He also urged all parties to exercise maximum restraint and to distance the region and its population from the dangers of war.
Last night, Mr. Netanyahu ordered the dispatch on Thursday of a delegation tasked with negotiating a hostage deal with Hamas.
The statement did not specify the destination of the delegation.
A ceasefire effort led by Qatar and Egypt and backed by the United States has so far failed to produce any agreement, with both sides in the more than nine-month-old Gaza conflict blaming each other for the impasse.
