The Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee on Tuesday continued its series of discussions on the Draft Law, focusing on the provisions related to the imposition of financial penalties as part of the law’s implementation.
According to the proposed law, the Defense Ministry's Director General will be authorized to impose a financial penalty if it is found that 5% of the students at a particular yeshiva do not meet the "declared condition." This "declared condition" stipulates that a yeshiva student studies Torah regularly and for at least 45 hours a week, or 40 hours in the case of a married yeshiva student.
The declaration is made by a person in charge at the yeshiva, who also serves as the authorized signatory for the public benefit organization operating it. In the case of a violation, the Defense Ministry Director General will be able to impose a fine of up to 20,000 shekels, after giving the individual responsible an opportunity to present their arguments.
In addition, a fine of 1,500 shekels may be imposed for each student for whom a declaration was submitted that does not meet the legal requirements. It was also decided that a person in charge who was sanctioned more than once, or who faces fines related to five or more students, will not be permitted to submit further declarations for the purpose of delaying military service.
It was also decided that the Defense Ministry Director General will be required to report to the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee every six months regarding the number of penalties imposed, their amounts, and the reasons for the imposition of these penalties.
Bereaved relatives also spoke during the discussion.
Mia Moreno, widow of Lieutenant Colonel Emmanuel Moreno, said: "Both my sons serve in the army. No exemption law applies to me. If they don't enlist, they will go to jail, and they are IDF orphans. How can it be that the State of Israel creates a distinction between citizens? One of my sons studied for two years in a yeshiva, he is a Torah scholar, and chose to enlist in a regular army unit. Torah has great value, but Torah without a connection to the country, I wonder what its value is."
Michal Castel Kedar, the widow of fallen IDF soldier Lieutenant Colonel Dolev Kedar, shared: "We are not a religious family, but Dolev had a company of yeshiva students, and he did everything to make sure they received what they needed. How is it possible that it is not obvious that everyone who lives in this country should also defend it?"
The Committee discussions are expected to continue next week as part of the effort to complete the Draft Law legislation in the coming weeks.