Overview
- Lawmakers voted 56–43 to move the Basic Law: Torah Study forward in a preliminary reading, sending the measure to parliamentary committee for further revision following Wednesday’s vote.
- Coalition officials agreed to strip the clause that explicitly compared full‑time yeshiva study to IDF service, a change pushed by Religious Zionism and parts of Likud to broaden support.
- Ultra‑Orthodox parties pressed hard for the measure, with Shas leader Aryeh Deri demanding a vote as leverage for other coalition business and the bill’s sponsors framing it as recognition of a national value.
- The advance prompted street protests over conscription policy and internal party anger after Religious Zionism MK Moshe Solomon voted against the bill, drawing talk of sanctions from colleagues.
- If passed in later readings, the Basic Law would carry constitutional weight, make judicial challenges harder, and affect debates over conscription and state support for long‑term Torah study against the backdrop of recent IDF manpower strains and a 2024 Supreme Court push to enforce enlistment.