Finance Minister Betzalel Smotrich said that the legislation of the Basic Law: Limmud Torah is essential to protecting the Religious Zionist system but that he was vehemently opposed ot the original version because it equated Limmud Torah with IDF service.

It should be noted that the bill, which was passed in the Knesset Committee on Tuesday and was scheduled for its first reading in the Knesset on Wednesday, was pulled from the agenda at the last minute—apparently due to concerns that the coalition lacked a majority to pass it.

In an exclusive recording aired Tuesday evening by i24NEWS from a closed conference of Religious Zionist yeshiva administrators, Smotrich said that he had opposed the bill’s original wording and even threatened to resign from the government and return to the Knesset as an MK in order to vote against the Chareidi proposal.

Describing the negotiations over the legislation, Smotrich said: “We demanded to remove any language comparing Torah study to military service, or speaking about contribution, or anything else from which it could be inferred that Limmud Torah exempts someone from military service. That is completely contrary to everything we believe. I said that if necessary, I would resign myself in order to return as an MK and vote against it.”

“We won,” he continued. “The entire Section 2 was removed. Only Section 1 remains, establishing Limmud Torah as a fundamental value of the Jewish people and the State of Israel, serving as a constitutional counterweight.”

In the recording, Smotrich also warned the heads of Religious Zionist yeshivos that the legislation is not intended solely to protect the Chareidi community but is also vital to safeguarding the Religious Zionist yeshiva system, including hesder yeshivos.

“Without this law, our yeshivos will be in the crosshairs,” he warned. “They’re waiting for us around the corner—we’re next in line. I suggest we not be naïve about this. This law is important for us as well.”

The Basic Law: Limmud Torah states that Torah study is a fundamental value in the heritage of the Jewish people and in the State of Israel. The legislation is intended to serve as a constitutional counterweight to the Basic Law: Human Dignity and Liberty, following court rulings that invalidated previous military exemption laws on the grounds that they conflicted with the principle of equality derived from that Basic Law.

(YWN Israel Desk—Jerusalem)