The High Court of Justice approves the request to postpone the legislation on a new draft law but grants the government only three additional months to enact the law; The decision will most likely result in a further rift within the current coalition and trigger early general elections.
The High Court of Justice (HCJ) gave the government a three-month extension on Tuesday in order to implement a current IDF draft bill.
Last month, the state submitted a petition to the HCJ asking to postpone the implementation of the ruling on the draft law and allow it to complete legislation regarding Haredi enlistment into the IDF by the end of the Knesset’s winter session.
The existing Israeli Defense Service Law expires in September after the HCJ deemed it unconstitutional, meaning that the Knesset is obliged to pass an alternative law before then.
Previous year 2017, the HCJ made a majority ruling canceling an amendment ratified by the Knesset almost two years prior to the Conscription Law which lowered the annual quota on the number of Haredim required to draft into the IDF.
The judges emphasized in their decision that the law should be enacted no later than December of this year.
“After carefully considering the issue, we decided to partially approve the request and to postpone the cancellation of Chapter 3 of the Defense Service Law so that it will take effect on December 2, 2018 under the date set in the ruling,” they wrote.