IDF General Says Enforcement Freeze Will Not Boost Haredi Draft

Brig. Gen. Shay Tayeb, head of the IDF Personnel Directorate's Planning and Personnel Management Division, told the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee that a 90-day freeze on arrests, investigations and enforcement against full-time yeshiva students will not bring recruits tomorrow morning and could endanger gains already made. He said enforcement is part of implementing the Security Service Law, Haredi enlistment has risen from about 1,800 in 2024 to about 3,500 this past year, and Israel is on track for 90,000 draft evaders as the IDF says it needs 12,000 troops. Israel should protect Torah study and Haredi service frameworks while preserving one enforceable law and the manpower needed to defend the country.