Israeli religious party says military exemptions ruling won’t threaten ruling coalition
By Associated Press, Updated: Wednesday, February 22, 5:15 AM
JERUSALEM — Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s top religious partner said Wednesday that Israel’s ruling coalition would not be shaken by the Supreme Court’s annulment of a contentious law allowing ultra-Orthodox Jewish men to avoid military service.
The military exemptions are resented by Israel’s secular majority and have been a major source of conflict between the two communities. On Tuesday, the Supreme Court overturned the so-called Tal Law, saying that it failed to encourage more ultra-Orthodox to perform compulsory military service or alternative community service.
Because provisions for the exemptions weren’t enforced, the percentage of ultra-Orthodox who did not serve in the military grew rather than shrank in the decade since the law was passed. The law, the court ruled, “did not meet expectations, nor did it lead to the required changes ... concerning an equal sharing of the burden.”
The court’s decision set off speculation the two ultra-Orthodox parties in Netanyahu’s coalition might pull out and bring down the government, possibly leading to the formation of more moderate government or new elections.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/middle-east/israeli-religious-party-says-military-exemptions-ruling-wont-threaten-ruling-coalition/2012/02/22/gIQAbWSfSR_story.html
