By: Ariella Haviv

In a political move that sent shockwaves through Israel’s governing coalition, the Degel HaTorah faction of United Torah Judaism (UTJ) announced Monday evening that it will withdraw from the government. The decision, reported by Israel National News, came after the party’s spiritual leader, Rabbi Dov Lando, issued a sweeping directive to vacate all coalition roles in protest over the handling of a contentious draft law.

The withdrawal of Degel HaTorah’s three Knesset members from the coalition marks a serious rupture in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s governing alliance, a coalition already strained by numerous internal disagreements. According to the report at Israel National News, the party’s statement cited “the Draft Law presented tonight to the Haredi Knesset members—which deviates from the agreements and promises made by Likud and the coalition” as the central reason for their abrupt departure.

“In his conversation this evening with Degel HaTorah’s Knesset members, Rabbi Lando emphasized the great responsibility resting on their shoulders and the sanctification of God’s name through their unwavering defense of Torah scholars,” the party stated, according to Israel National News. “He instructed them to withdraw immediately.”

The defection did not stop with Degel HaTorah. In a coordinated maneuver, the Council of Torah Sages, the spiritual leadership guiding the Agudat Yisrael faction of UTJ, also instructed its Knesset representatives to resign from their coalition positions.

As Israel National News reported, the council’s statement noted: “In light of the fact that a draft bill concerning the regulation of yeshiva students’ status in relation to the conscription authorities—one that does not reflect the demands and views of our revered rabbis and great Torah scholars—was presented tonight, the members of the Council of Torah Sages have directed the representatives of Agudat Yisrael to step down from their coalition roles.”

The cascading withdrawals speak volumes about the depth of Haredi dissatisfaction with the government’s latest approach to the conscription of yeshiva students, a perennial flashpoint in Israeli politics.

Earlier Monday, Rabbi Lando’s office released a handwritten letter he addressed to Degel HaTorah’s MKs following the conclusion of the fast. The message, described by Israel National News as “unequivocal,” condemned the coalition’s failure to uphold its commitments on the draft legislation.

“Since the authorities are showing their intention to further restrict the lives of Torah scholars in various ways, and in attempts to humiliate and trample them, and time and again fail to fulfill their commitments to regulate the legal status of yeshiva students and Torah scholars—who are the crown of creation and the secret to its existence,” Rabbi Lando wrote, “my opinion is that we must immediately end our participation with the government and the coalition, including resigning from all the positions associated with it, and may God deliver us swiftly.”

The report at Israel National News emphasized the gravity of Rabbi Lando’s statement, especially his portrayal of Torah scholars as “the crown of creation” and as essential to the survival of the world — language that resonates deeply within the Haredi community.

Adding to the weight of the decree, Rabbi Moshe Hillel Hirsch, a prominent Haredi leader in his own right, also signed the letter at Rabbi Lando’s request, Israel National News reported. The rabbinic unity behind the move is seen as a signal of unprecedented resolve among the ultra-Orthodox leadership.

“In accordance with the instructions of our leader, the members of Knesset from Degel HaTorah will leave the government and the coalition today,” the party confirmed.