Israel’s Supreme Court, in an expanded panel headed by Deputy President Justice Noam Sohlberg, held a hearing on Wednesday on petitions from left-wing organizations, including the Reform Movement, demanding that the state order the immediate conscription of all bnei yeshivos—based on the Court’s prior ruling that there is currently no law regulating their status, and that the existing draft law must therefore be enforced.

The judges repeatedly pressed state representatives, asking why the IDF has not arrested thousands of bnei yeshivos who are technically considered draft dodgers, claiming that the IDF “needs more soldiers.” They were not receptive to responses by state representatives that there is no room in prison for thousands of “draft dodgers” and that the arrests of bnei yeshivos have not resulted in increased Chareidi conscription.

Justice Yael Wilner demanded that all 5,700 bnei yeshivos officially declared as “draft dodgers” be imprisoned immediately by the state, saying that “space can be made in prison for them.”

State Attorney Neta Oren told the court, “We aim to recruit soldiers, not to fill military detention facilities. We’re dealing with a large population that has not enlisted in the IDF for decades. Integrating them requires a gradual process—adapting military service to their cultural and social circumstances. The powers of the IDF and the police are limited, and comprehensive governmental coordination is needed.”

Wilner also demanded to know why only 54,000 initial draft orders were issued, rather than all 80,000. Attorney Oren replied, “It required significant resources from the military during wartime. There’s no point issuing numerous orders just for them to be quickly classified as evaders.”

At that point, two Chareidim burst into the courtroom shouting, “We will die before we enlist!” They were forcibly removed from the courtroom by security guards. A few minutes later, seven additional Chareidim burst into the room and were also forcibly removed.

The yarmulke-wearing Justice Sohlberg said that the IDF “needs these people now!” but did not address the question of how using police and IDF resources to arrest and imprison bnei yeshivos will help the army.

A representative of the yeshivas responded, “Einstein said that doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results is insanity.”

MK Meir Porush reacted to the hearing: “The hearing now taking place in the Supreme Court is the peak of estrangement from Am Yisrael. After the Attorney General failed miserably in her absurd plan to arrest lomdei Torah as a lever for forced conscription, the Supreme Court judges are now wondering why more lomdei Torah aren’t being arrested.”

“We have no faith in a judge who calls for arresting lomdei Torah, and in our view, he is not worthy of his position in a state that is ruled by Jews. Tomorrow tens of thousands will gather in Jerusalem and make clear to all authorities: we will not be silent and we will not forgive when the Torah is persecuted.”

(YWN Israel Desk—Jerusalem)