Government ministers met on Sunday and discussed applying economic sanctions to draft evaders who failed to report for military service—measures that would be implemented uniformly across all sectors.

The meeting was convened after Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara claimed last week that the government was violating a Supreme Court order by failing to carry out enforcement efforts against Chareidi “draft dodgers.”

Channel 14 reported that nationwide data presented at the meeting showed roughly 90,000 individuals currently obligated to enlist. This number reflects all those who did not report for their scheduled draft date and includes draft‑age citizens from 18 to 29—the general exemption age—not just the current year’s cohort.

The data indicated that only about 45% of these tens of thousands of draft evaders are from the Chareidi sector.

After the discussion, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu directed the formation of a ministerial task force, working alongside professional bodies such as the IDF Manpower Directorate and relevant ministries, to determine how the issue should be handled. The team is expected to present its recommendations within 30 days.

Netanyahu said that “steps should be taken [to increase recruitment] within the entire public. It’s not right to target only one sector.”

(YWN Israel Desk—Jerusalem)