Haredim keep right to delay service

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has delayed discussion of extending a law for five more years that allows yeshiva students to delay their military service.

On Jan. 16, Netanyahu said he would ask the Cabinet to extend the law, which was adopted 10 years ago to allow haredi Orthodox students to delay military service and then make the transition to a shorter service, for five more years.

In 2011, 2,361 haredi men enlisted in the Israel Defense Forces and national service, a 40 percent increase over the previous year, according to the Prime Minister’s Office. The numbers have tripled since 2008.

The Tal Law allows yeshiva students older than 22 to take a year off their studies for professional training without being drafted. In doing so they must commit to a shorter army service or a year of national service, or return to yeshiva studies. — jta