The government decision to invest NIS 10 million to finance the various aspects of the annual haredi pilgrimage to Uman sparked widespread criticism.
The possibility of the government allowing haredi (ultra-Orthodox) draft dodgers to fly to Uman and other destinations for annual pilgrimages ahead of the upcoming High Holy Days sparked widespread opposition on Tuesday.
Among the sanctions that exist in Israel for failure to enlist in the IDF is the prohibition to exit the country.
United Torah Judaism chair Yitzhak Goldknopf sent a letter to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday, requesting that haredim be allowed to fly to New York and other destinations ahead of the upcoming Jewish holidays despite the travel bans placed on draft dodgers.
In the letter, Goldknopf thanked Netanyahu for the governmental plan that would allow ultra-Orthodox Jews to visit spiritual sites in New York during the High Holy Days.
He then requested that the prime minister “expand the plan” so that those facing travel bans could fly as well, writing that such trips represent “a unique spiritual experience, and it is our obligation to enable them the same right granted to others.”
The government also decided this week to allocate NIS 10 million to finance various aspects of the annual haredi pilgrimage to Uman.
Widespread opposition to the Uman plan
Aliyah and Integration Minister MK Ofir Sofer (Religious Zionist Party) on Tuesday slammed any such decision to allow draft dodgers to fly to Uman while, meanwhile, reservists in the IDF receive emergency call-up orders.
“Focusing on draft evaders who want to fly to Uman while tens of thousands are receiving emergency call-up orders and will be fighting in Gaza during the holidays is a complete disconnection from reality,” Sofer said.
Yisrael Beytenu head Avigdor Liberman echoed Sofer’s sentiments, criticizing the government’s decision to fund flights to Uman for people trying to avoid army service while reservists continue to receive emergency conscription orders.
Opposition leader MK Yair Lapid (Yesh Atid) sent an official letter to Attorney-General Gali Baharav-Miara on Tuesday, calling on her to take action against the possibility that draft evaders would be permitted to leave the country.
In the letter, Lapid addressed “public reports that the government was considering allowing 10,000 ultra-Orthodox draft dodgers and other Israeli citizens to leave the country, including healthy individuals who are currently under an exit ban from Israel, who could be contributing to Israeli society and filling the IDF’s need for human resources instead.”
Lapid called on the attorney-general to “clarify her position on the matter” and “to ensure that all government authorities act in accordance with Israeli law.”
In attempts to prevent draft evaders from receiving government benefits, the state supported a petition to cancel the discount that yeshiva students who evade army service receive on National Insurance Institute payments, submitting its position to the High Court of Justice on Monday.
The state told the High Court that “the exemption and deferment from service should not serve as grounds for broadening the National Insurance benefit beyond its intended framework.”
This petition, which is supported by the state, aims to cancel the discount for those who avoid military service. It was first created by the Movement for Quality Government in Israel and the Israel Hofsheet organization approximately a year ago.
Haredi enlistment into the army is a pressing issue in the country, as the government has teetered on the brink of failure to pass a draft law that would prevent eligible ultra-Orthodox youth from avoiding enlistment.
Meanwhile, haredi leaders cite an unpardonable destruction to the community’s way of life as the reason for draft evasion. The military suffers from a growing workforce drain as the war against Israel’s various fronts continues.
Sarah Ben-Nun contributed to this report.
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