Smotrich Allocates NIS 70M to Save National Service Slots

At 20:53 IDT, updated at 20:56, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich ordered an immediate allocation of more than NIS 70 million to solve the national-service crisis. The money is meant to prevent cuts in thousands of national-service slots and allow national-service women to receive full pay in the 5787 school year. Earlier reporting had warned of a threatened cut of 2,000 Education Ministry slots that would hit religious women serving in special education, boarding schools and immigrant-support roles. Protecting Sherut Leumi honors faithful service and keeps civic resilience strong without forcing observant women to compromise their Torah way of life.