MK Yoav Ben Tzur said he believes legislation regulating military exemptions for yeshiva students will be approved before the end of the current Knesset term, while launching a sharp attack on the judiciary and the attorney general.

Speaking against the backdrop of Holocaust Remembrance Day, Ben Tzur referenced remarks made during High Court proceedings about what he described as the potential “destruction of the Torah world,” drawing a comparison between the Jewish people’s past suffering and current tensions in Israel. “More than six million Jews were murdered in the Holocaust… and even in the darkest period our people faced, we survived as a nation in order to continue the chain of generations through Jewish tradition,” he said, adding that today, “specifically here, in the Jewish state… they want to dismantle the Torah world.”

According to Ben Tzur, many in the chareidi public feel they are under sustained pressure from elements within the legal system. “The atmosphere is that both the attorney general and the Supreme Court are looking for every possible way to restrict us,” he claimed, warning that the public discourse is spilling over into incitement. “They are trying at any cost to incite… and that incitement is slowly filtering into the public.”

At the same time, he called for greater unity, invoking the days of Sefiras HaOmer and the lesson from Rabi Akiva’s talmidim. He argued that the divisions within Israeli society stem not only from ideological disagreements but from a lack of mutual respect. “They did not treat one another with respect,” he said, expressing regret over the deep internal strife.

The debate also centered on the proposed draft law, which Ben Tzur described as an urgent necessity. “I think it is important to pass this law. We have no other choice,” he said, explaining that the goal is to formalize the status of Torah learners and remove the constant uncertainty they face. Still, he acknowledged the unknowns ahead: “What will happen afterward? We do not know, but we are making our efforts,” particularly in light of the possibility of High Court intervention.

He concluded on a cautiously optimistic note, saying efforts are ongoing to reach agreements and that the outcome will also depend on rabbinic leadership. “We hope and are working to regulate the status of Torah learners,” he said, expressing confidence that despite the challenges, the law will pass before the end of the current term.

{Matzav.com}