A political crisis erupted in Israel’s governing coalition on Tuesday after Degel HaTorah – the litvishe faction of the United Torah Judaism party – announced it would push to dissolve the Knesset and call early elections, following Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s acknowledgment last week that the coalition does not have sufficient votes to pass legislation exempting yeshivah students from military service.

The dramatic move came after Hagaon Harav Dov Lando, shlita, the faction’s senior Rav, issued a formal directive instructing Degel HaTorah to work toward dissolving the 25th Knesset at the earliest opportunity. In a letter to Degel MKs, Rav Lando wrote: “You have carried out your mission faithfully, above and beyond. Wee have no trust in the Prime Minister. We no longer feel that we are his partners, and we are not obligated to him.From here on, we will do only what we believe is good for Chareidi Jewry.And in our view, elections must be held as soon as possible.All manner of talk about a [coalition] bloc — no longer exists.”

Degel HaTorah chairman R’ Moshe Gafni subsequently cited Rav Lando’s directive as a binding instruction governing the faction’s course of action.

The Charedi community’s frustration reflects months of broken assurances on an issue of existential importance to the Torah world. The military exemption legislation, which would enshrine in law protections for yeshivah students dedicated to full-time Torah study, has been stalled repeatedly.

Most recently, the bill was removed from the legislative agenda in March following the outbreak of hostilities between the United States, Israel, and Iran. Since then, coalition leaders have failed to bring it back to the floor, and Netanyahu’s candid admission last week that the votes are simply not there was seen by Charedi leaders as the breaking point.

For the Charedi community, the stakes could not be higher. The legislation goes to the heart of a long-standing arrangement — rooted in the founding period of the State — that recognized the Charedi community’s refusal to enlist.

Whether the effort will succeed depends heavily on Shas, the Sephardic Charedi party with eleven mandates. Shas chairman R. Aryeh Deri has not issued public statements echoing Degel HaTorah’s ultimatum.

A spokesman for Rav Lando’s office pushed back against suggestions of any daylight between the two Charedi parties. “Contrary to various reports, there is complete and absolute consensus and cooperation between Degel HaTorah and Shas regarding the course of action concerning the status of yeshivah students,” the spokesman told the Times of Israel.

Degel HaTorah’s four mandates alone are insufficient to secure a Knesset majority for dissolution, and the backing of Shas would be required.

Secular opposition parties wasted little time attempting to capitalize on the coalition rift. Yesh Atid leader Yair Lapid announced his party would place a dissolution bill on the Knesset agenda next week. The Democrats party submitted its own dissolution bill, and Yisrael Beytenu was also reported to have done so. Opposition coordinator MK Meirav Ben Ari appealed to Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana to convene an emergency Knesset presidium meeting by telephone to fast-track a dissolution vote as early as Wednesday.

Coalition lawmakers moved to contain the damage, urging their Charedi partners not to bring down the government. Likud MK Boaz Bismuth, chairman of the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, posted a public appeal on social media: “Don’t dismantle the bloc! I worked side by side with the Charedim. I see them as partners on the path.” Bismuth insisted that the draft exemption bill “is ready and can already be advanced tomorrow,” and called on the Charedi parties not to “give a gift” to the opposition or to Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara.

National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir’s Otzma Yehudit party also urged restraint, saying in a statement that while going to early elections would be a mistake, “this government still has several tasks left to complete.”

Israel must hold national elections no later than October regardless of whether the coalition survives in its current form.