BySARAH BEN-NUN, KESHET NEEVJULY 15, 2026 15:31The High Court of Justice on Wednesday temporarily froze a law passed by the Knesset a day earlier that would halt arrest, investigation, and enforcement proceedings against qualifying haredi yeshiva students who failed to report for military service.Justice Ofer Grosskopf issued a provisional order suspending the law’s entry into force until further notice. He also issued a conditional order requiring the Knesset and government to explain why the law should not be struck down.Grosskopf cited the court’s longstanding rulings on the enlistment of yeshiva students, the implications of freezing enforcement proceedings “with regard to only certain sections of the population,” and the “weighty arguments” raised by the petitioners against the law’s validity.The court ordered that the petitions be heard as soon as possible by an expanded panel to be selected by Supreme Court President Isaac Amit. The respondents must submit their replies to the petitions and requests for an interim injunction four days before the hearing, for which a date has not yet been set.Israel’s ultra-Orthodox Jewish sector has been protesting over the attempts to draft young haredi men into the military. (credit: Amir Levy/Getty Images)Court orders state to defend haredi draft enforcement freezeThe ruling came in four petitions filed by Israel Hofsheet; opposition leader Yair Lapid and seven other Yesh Atid lawmakers; Yisrael Beytenu chairman Avigdor Liberman, MK Oded Forer, and the party; and the Movement for Quality Government in Israel.The order does not strike down the legislation but prevents it from taking effect while the court considers the petitions.The Knesset passed the law in its second and third readings on Tuesday by 58 votes to 54. The temporary provision was set to remain in force until November 30 and would suspend enforcement against yeshiva students meeting the conditions established by the law.The legislation was passed despite warnings from the Knesset’s legal advisers, who said it would grant yeshiva students immunity from criminal sanctions for failing to meet their reporting obligations while leaving those sanctions in place for the rest of the population. They also raised serious concerns about the legislative process through which the bill was advanced.Follow us on Google