Whether ultra-Orthodox Jewish men should be drafted into the army has become one of the defining issues of Israel's election on 27 October, Al Jazeera reports.
About 80,000 Haredi men aged 18 to 24 are estimated to be avoiding service as the military reports shortages. A September Israel Democracy Institute poll found 72% of Israelis want them conscripted. Former army chief Gadi Eisenkot, whose Yashar party narrowly leads Likud in polls, has framed the vote as a choice between his "government of conscription" and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's.
The Haredi parties Shas and United Torah Judaism pushed to dissolve parliament after Netanyahu told them he could not pass an exemption law. This week he criticised the arrest of 40 Haredi draft evaders. Both parties say they will not join any coalition that does not exempt their community, and some Likud lawmakers have also criticised the exemptions.
Source: Al Jazeera
