United Torah Judaism's Eliakim Stark Backs Core Studies and Help for Haredi Soldiers
United Torah Judaism MK Eliakim Stark has backed core studies and assistance for Haredi soldiers, bringing education and employment into a political debate dominated by draft exemptions.
The newly sworn lawmaker set out his priorities in a Channel 13 interview broadcast on Wednesday, 11 November. The broadcaster's account highlighted his wish to help young Haredim find employment opportunities, alongside support for those serving in the military. The interview came as arrests of yeshiva students prompted street protests and party leaders explored terms for supporting a new government.
A Different Emphasis Inside the Party
Stark's intervention puts schooling and livelihoods alongside the question that has dominated Haredi politics: how to protect Torah students from conscription.
Core studies are the general subjects taught alongside religious learning, including mathematics, English and Hebrew. For young people considering professional training, those subjects can determine which courses they can enter. The Bank of Israel, in research on Haredi participation in technology employment, identified gaps in earlier schooling as a principal barrier for young Haredi men.
Arrests Bring Protesters Into the Streets
On Wednesday evening, protesters blocked light rail tracks in Jerusalem and Route 38 near Beit Shemesh after three yeshiva students were arrested over their military service status. Behadrei Haredim reported that the arrests followed a police check during a journey back from the Dead Sea.
A police statement quoted by the outlet identified the Jerusalem protest site as the junction of Sarei Yisrael and Jaffa streets. Officers and Border Police were deployed to clear the routes.
Coalition Talks Return to the Draft
The same dispute is shaping negotiations over Israel's next government. On Thursday evening, N12 reported journalist Yishai Cohen's account that Avigdor Liberman was negotiating with United Torah Judaism over a temporary halt to arrests and guarantees for draft exemption legislation.
According to that account, Rabbi Dov Landau, the spiritual leader of Degel HaTorah, wants arrests of yeshiva students stopped immediately. Negotiators were examining assurances that legislation would pass if United Torah Judaism enabled a government to be formed.
The party had declined to recommend a candidate for prime minister during President Isaac Herzog's consultations. Gadi Eisenkot now holds the mandate to assemble a coalition, making the Haredi party's position relevant to the parliamentary support he can secure.
Employment Figures Explain the Stakes
The Israel Democracy Institute's 2025 statistical report provides a measure of the economic challenge. Using 2024 data for people aged 25 to 66, it recorded employment among Haredi men at 54%, compared with 86.5% among other Jewish men. The corresponding rates for women were much closer: 81% among Haredi women and 82.5% among other Jewish women.
The Bank of Israel's research found that dedicated training tracks had yet to produce greater integration of young Haredi men into technology employment, pointing to the importance of the education received before professional training begins.
