Ultra-orthodox rabbi says citizens will leave Israel over draft, drawing ire from lawmakers

March 10 (UPI) -- Yitzhak Yosef, the Sephardic chief rabbi of Israel, said Saturday that citizens will leave the country if they are forced to be drafted -- drawing the ire of lawmakers.

"Will they force us to join the army? We will go abroad," Yosef said. The Haredim have long enjoyed exemptions from mandatory military service, but the issue has sparked debates between those calling for fairness in military service and those advocating religious freedom.

The Israeli Supreme Court struck down the law granting blanket exemptions for Haredi yeshiva students from military service in 2017. The court instructed the government to pass new legislation that would lead to greater ultra-Orthodox enlistment.

In June 2023, the government passed a resolution to temporarily avoid drafting ultra-Orthodox yeshiva students while the Knesset formulated and passed new legislation on the contentious issue. Now, such temporary band-aids on the issue are due to run out by March 24 -- amid the heightened discussions around security amid Israel's war in Gaza.

"Rabbi Yosef's words are a disgrace and an insult to the IDF soldiers who sacrifice their lives for the defense of the country. Rabbi Yosef is a state employee, with a salary from the state, he cannot threaten the state," opposition leader Yair Lapid said on social media. "Whoever evades the IDF will not receive a penny from the State of Israel."

In further comments made on social media, Lapid said that forcing 66,000 ultra-orthodox youth to enlist would bolster the Israeli Defense Forces with 105 new battalions he said are "needed for Israel's security."

Avigdor Lieberman, a Soviet-born politician and head of the Yisrael Beytenu party, accused Yosef of hurting Israeli security.

But the Haredim seem unlikely to budge and acquiesce to the draft. Last week, protesters blocked a highway near Tel-Aviv to protest against conscription, chanting: "We Will die and not be mobilized."