Bibi Won’t Extend Haredi Service Exemption

By Haaretz January 30, 2012

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told a Likud faction meeting Monday that the Tal Law, which allows ultra-Orthodox citizens to defer military service, will not be extended by the government but rather go to a vote in the Knesset.

According to Netanyahu, the Knesset has approximately half a year to find a “just solution that will not divide the country.”

Sources at the Prime Minister’s Office said on Monday that the weight given to army service or national service would be doubled, while weight granted based on the length of a couple’s marriage would be reduced.

In addition, a committee led by PMO Director Harel Locker will ensure that housing programs benefit the entire public, and not just the ultra-Orthodox.

Yisrael Beiteinu head Avigdor Lieberman praised the decision on Monday to give greater weight to army service, but insisted that the requirement to work must be included in the criteria as well. “If they want to help the ultra-Orthodox sector, let them do that separately,” he said.

For more, go to Haaretz.com

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