By Emily Rose
JERUSALEM (Reuters) – Israel’s military on Sunday issued calls for more members of the ultra-Orthodox community to strengthen its forces as it battles on its southern and northern borders, a move that could further inflame tensions between religious and secular Israelis. .
The Supreme Court ruled in June that the Defense Ministry could no longer grant blanket exemptions to Jewish seminary students from the conscript army, an arrangement that had existed since the time of Israel’s founding in 1948, when the number of ultra-Orthodox, or charedi, increased. small.
As Israel wages wars against Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon, Israel’s Defense Ministry said Friday that 7,000 community members would gradually receive notifications starting Sunday.
A Defense Ministry statement said it would work with community leaders to ensure ultra-Orthodox soldiers could maintain their religious lifestyle while serving.
In July, the army drafted a thousand ultra-Orthodox men. The two religious parties in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government have opposed the new policy change, putting heavy pressure on the right-wing coalition.
Leaders of the fast-growing ultra-Orthodox community say forcing seminary students to serve alongside secular Israelis, including women, risks destroying their identity as religious Jews.
The government is facing increasing pressure from Israeli reservists, many of whom have served for much of the past year, to appoint ultra-Orthodox members.
Israeli public broadcaster Kan reported on Sunday that some rabbis urged those who received notices to refuse.
(Reporting by Emily Rose; Editing by Jan Harvey)