JERUSALEM (VINnews) — Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited soldiers of the Haredi Chashmonaim combat brigade and stated: “I respect the world of Torah study.” He also clarified his position that “anyone who is not studying must enlist,” a significant statement ahead of the approaching elections.

The Prime Minister visited the brigades’s base in the Jordan Valley together with Boaz Bismuth, chairman of the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee. He was received with singing and applause from the soldiers, who appreciated the gesture by Netanyahu.

ברקע משבר הגיוס נתניהו וביסמוט מבקרים בחטיבת החשמונאים. נכנסו לאולם לשירת “כי אורך ימים” השמורה לרבנים וראשי ישיבות בדרך כלל. pic.twitter.com/yaLprpLKsY

— שילה פריד🇮🇱 (@shilofreid) May 28, 2026

The Prime Minister expressed his appreciation for Torah scholarship and declared: “I respect the world of Torah study because generations of my ancestors and your ancestors preserved the heritage of Israel through Torah learning.”

Netanyahu clarified his position: “My grandfather did not think there was any contradiction between studying Torah and bearing arms. On the contrary, he believed that Torah study gives you the strength to bear arms. And today, we need to renew that idea. Anyone who is not studying Torah must enlist. And when he enlists, he must be given the right to enter as a charedi and leave as a charedi.”

He promised: “We are going to connect these two worlds. That is what you are doing. You continue the legacy of the Hasmoneans. It only adds strength, the fact that you can study Torah and serve, maintain a charedi religious lifestyle and serve, wield the sword of David and serve, and also study. This is what strengthens us more than anything else.”

Netanyahu also praised the soldiers for combining military service with Torah study: “I want to congratulate you for what you are doing. I am very moved by it. I was here before you went to officers’ training, and today I meet graduates. It is remarkable. You are the pioneers, and others are following behind you. I see it. I see the significant increase in enlistment and in the desire to defend the State of Israel.”

Netanyahu connected the issue of charedi enlistment to the ongoing war with Iran-backed forces: “We are still in the midst of a war on seven fronts. Of course, we have achieved tremendous successes. We have not finished yet, but those achievements come first and foremost from faith and spirit, from strength, tools, technology, and weapons as well, but ultimately, or at the beginning of it all, comes the spirit of the Hasmoneans. You are Hasmoneans!”

Boaz Bismuth added: “I am very moved to be here. We are in a place where a real revolution is taking place. We are witnessing something amazing and inspiring. Our two greatest values are the Torah that brought us here and the IDF that protects us. At this base, these two things come together, Torah and uniforms. I want to thank Prime Minister Netanyahu; this is happening on your watch. This revolution cannot be stopped.”