El Parlamento de Israel rechazó este jueves, tras una sesión que se extendió hasta la madrugada, una moción presentada por la oposición para disolver la Knéset. La propuesta, que habría abierto la puerta a elecciones anticipadas, fue rechazada con 61 votos en contra y 53 a favor, en un contexto de tensión política por la legislación sobre el reclutamiento militar de los judíos ultraortodoxos.

La iniciativa fue impulsada por el partido Yesh Atid, encabezado por el líder opositor Yair Lapid, ante la falta de consenso dentro del gobierno sobre una ley que establezca quiénes deben cumplir con el servicio militar obligatorio. El debate se centra en los hombres haredíes —como se conoce a los judíos ultraortodoxos—, tradicionalmente eximidos del reclutamiento si estudian a tiempo completo en escuelas religiosas.

Desde junio de 2024, esa exención dejó de estar legalmente protegida tras la expiración de una disposición temporal. En respuesta, el Tribunal Supremo de Israel ordenó al Ejército comenzar a alistar a los hombres ultraortodoxos, lo que intensificó el conflicto dentro de la coalición gobernante.

Los partidos Shas y Judaísmo Unido de la Torá, ambos ultraortodoxos y parte del bloque que sostiene al primer ministro Benjamin Netanyahu, habían amenazado con abandonar la coalición si no se avanzaba en una ley que preserve las exenciones. No obstante, ambas formaciones votaron finalmente contra la disolución del Parlamento tras alcanzar lo que describieron como “principios de entendimiento sobre la Ley para Preservar el Estatus de los Estudiantes de Yeshivá”.

La oposición se negó a posponer la votación, como pedían los partidos religiosos, y decidió continuar con el intento de disolución. “No hay razón para seguir dando tiempo a un gobierno que no gobierna”, declaró Lapid ante el pleno, aunque reconoció que no alcanzaban los votos necesarios.

El servicio militar en Israel es obligatorio para la mayoría de los ciudadanos judíos a partir de los 18 años. Sin embargo, desde la fundación del Estado, los estudiantes de yeshivá han recibido exenciones especiales que nunca fueron incorporadas formalmente a la legislación. La reciente decisión judicial cambió ese escenario.

Las negociaciones en curso dentro de la coalición buscan establecer un nuevo marco legal que permita mantener un número significativo de exenciones, al tiempo que se fijan cuotas mínimas de reclutamiento y sanciones civiles para quienes se nieguen a cumplir el servicio. Entre las sanciones propuestas están la restricción de licencias de conducir, prohibiciones para salir del país y la eliminación de beneficios sociales. Las fuerzas armadas han señalado que no están en condiciones de encarcelar a miles de desertores, por lo que proponen medidas alternativas de presión.

El presidente del Comité de Defensa del Parlamento, Yuli Edelstein, confirmó que se han alcanzado acuerdos preliminares con los partidos religiosos sobre la estructura de la ley. El plan incluye objetivos de reclutamiento que alcanzarían el 50 % del grupo convocado en un plazo de cinco años, con sanciones que entrarían en vigor de inmediato en caso de incumplimiento.

La propuesta ha enfrentado una fuerte resistencia dentro de la comunidad haredí.

Algunos rabinos influyentes han emitido directivas religiosas prohibiendo apoyar cualquier norma que establezca cuotas de reclutamiento. Según medios israelíes, la mayoría de los estudiantes de yeshivá rara vez abandonan el país o acceden a educación superior, por lo que las sanciones tendrían un alcance limitado.

La controversia sobre las exenciones ha cobrado nueva relevancia desde el inicio de la guerra en la Franja de Gaza, que obligó al gobierno a extender el servicio militar obligatorio y movilizar a decenas de miles de reservistas. En este contexto, aumenta la presión social para que todos los sectores de la población compartan las cargas del conflicto armado.

Por ahora, el resultado de la votación otorga a Netanyahu una semana adicional para estabilizar su coalición y avanzar en un acuerdo legislativo. De fracasar, se reactivará la presión opositora para convocar elecciones, mientras continúa el debate sobre el futuro del servicio militar en Israel.

(Con información de EFE y AFP)

The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation’s (GHF) new chairman is ignoring critics and keeping his focus on what he calls the group’s «singular mission» of making sure the people of Gaza have food.

«Our mission has nothing to do with Hamas. It has nothing to do with Israel. It has everything to do with making sure that hungry Gazans get food. That is our singular mission. No other mission,» Rev. Johnnie Moore, GHF’s executive chairman, told Fox News Digital.

Moore took the helm June 3, just a few days after the Israeli- and U.S.-backed aid group began its distribution operations.

HAMAS WORKING TO ‘SABOTAGE’ TRUMP-BACKED AID GROUP WITH ‘FAKE NEWS’: ISRAELI OFFICIAL

Even before GHF began distributing aid, it faced criticism in the weeks leading up to its launch. The United Nations came out strongly against the group. U.N. Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator Tom Fletcher was a vocal critic, claiming the U.N. already had the infrastructure and ability to distribute aid.

Moore, however, believes GHF is «trying to solve a problem that the U.N. hasn’t been able to solve,» namely, the issue of Hamas stealing aid. Rather than admonish critics, Moore is urging them to join GHF’s efforts to get food to people on the ground in Gaza.

The GHF chief also noted that, despite what critics have said, Gazans have been «incredibly grateful» to receive the support. Not only have the beneficiaries been thanking the U.S., they’ve been thanking President Donald Trump. Moore attributes this to a promise the commander in chief made in the Oval Office.

Rev. Johnnie Moore, GHF’s executive chairman, says Gazans receiving aid from GHF are thanking President Donald Trump because of a remark he made in the Oval Office. (Reuters/Nathan Howard)

US-BACKED GAZA AID GROUP PAUSES FOOD DISTRIBUTION AFTER DAYS OF VIOLENCE

«They’re thanking President Trump specifically because a few weeks ago, in the Oval Office, in one of the many, many press briefings that President Trump does, he made a passing comment,» Moore said.

«And the comment related to how Hamas was treating the Gazan people very badly when it came to humanitarian aid. And he made a promise that the United States would do something about it. And the people in Gaza are attributing our free distribution of food as a direct response to the promise of the president of the United States.»

Israel and the U.S. have repeatedly said that GHF is the best mechanism for distributing aid to Gazans and ensuring that Hamas does not get anything. Moore told Fox News Digital humanitarian aid officials have faced a «false choice» for years between Hamas and the people of Gaza.

«I think for many, many years, the aid community thought that the cost of giving aid to the people of Gaza is that you had to lose a certain amount of that aid to all of these other nefarious purposes. We’re just showing that that’s a false choice. That doesn’t have to be the case. We can actually give aid without facing these dilemmas,» Moore said.

Palestinians carry aid supplies they received from the U.S.-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation in the central Gaza Strip May 29, 2025.  (Reuters/Ramadan Abed)

TENSIONS RISE AS ISRAEL STRONGLY DENIES FIRING ON PALESTINIANS AT GAZA HUMANITARIAN SITE

«Since the Israeli authorities allowed the U.N. to resume bringing limited aid into Gaza after nearly 80 days of a total blockade of any supplies, there have been understandable instances of trucks carrying food being offloaded by hungry civilians,» Eri Kaneko, spokesperson for the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, told Fox News Digital.

«In some cases, we have also seen unacceptable looting by armed, criminal gangs, which posed tremendous risk to our drivers’ safety. To meet humanitarian needs in Gaza and help reduce looting, far more essential supplies should be allowed into Gaza through multiple crossings and routes.»

In late May, Israeli U.N. Ambassador Danny Danon revealed the international institution was using «mafia-like» tactics against NGOs that were open to working with GHF. The U.N. removed several NGOs from a shared aid database, which acts as a «central system for tracking aid deliveries into Gaza,» according to Danon.

The following week, after Danon exposed the U.N.’s actions, the U.S. vetoed a U.N. Security Council resolution calling for a ceasefire in Gaza. The resolution also addressed humanitarian aid, though Danon said it would have undermined, rather than advanced, such efforts.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

Just minutes before vetoing the resolution, U.S. Chargé d’Affaires Dorothy Shea urged the U.N. to support GHF «to help it safely deliver aid without being diverted by Hamas. The GHF has emphasized it will deliver aid consistent with the humanitarian principles of humanity, neutrality, impartiality and independence.»

Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., said Wednesday that he had no recollection of his fellow Democratic Party colleagues referring to the anti-ICE protests in Los Angeles as «peaceful.»

«What do Democrats mean when they say the riots in L.A. are peaceful?» Durbin was asked by a reporter outside the Capitol. 

«I never heard them say that,» Durbin responded, leading the reporter to ask Durbin whether he condemned the ongoing anti-ICE protests in Los Angeles, which some have said amount to riots.

«I condemn violence, whether it’s in the Capitol or in L.A.,» Durbin shot back before being ushered away out of earshot. 

CALIFORNIA OFFICIALS ARE TRYING TO DENY LA RIOT ‘CHAOS’ FOR ‘POLITICAL GAIN,’ SHERIFF SAYS

The No. 2 Democrat in the Senate may not have heard any of his fellow party members use the word «peaceful» in their descriptions of the ongoing chaos in Los Angeles, but that doesn’t mean they have not.

«A lot of these peaceful protests are being generated because the President of the United States is sowing chaos,» Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., said on Sunday’s «Meet the Press» on NBC. 

Just the day before, President Donald Trump called on thousands of National Guard troops to go to Los Angeles to help quell the ongoing chaos, which has included attacks on law enforcement, property damage and looting.

«The vast majority of protesters and demonstrators are peaceful,» Sen. Alex Padilla, D-Calif., said on MSNBC. «They’re passionate.»

SEN. CORY BOOKER CALLS LOS ANGELES RIOTS ‘PEACEFUL,’ SLAMS TRUMP FOR DEPLOYING NATIONAL GUARD

Rep. Nanette Barragán, a Democrat who represents California’s 44th Congressional District, said on CNN’s «State of the Union» program on Sunday that «We are having an administration that’s targeting peaceful protests.»

Conservative critics also fired back after former Vice President Kamala Harris referred to the ongoing chaos as «overwhelmingly peaceful.»

«The country really dodged a bullet in November,» Fox News contributor Guy Benson posted on X in response to Harris’ social media post. In another post, Benson added, «Their official position is that they’re appalled by what’s happening in Los Angeles…because of Trump and ICE, not the violent rioters. In its current form, this party cannot be salvaged.»

DOZENS OF ANTI-ICE RIOTERS ARRESTED IN LA AS TRUMP SENDS IN NATIONAL GUARD TO QUELL VIOLENCE

Meanwhile, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton got heat for describing the situation in Los Angeles as «peaceful.»

«California Governor Newsom didn’t request the National Guard be deployed to his state following peaceful demonstrations. Trump sent them anyway. It’s the first time in 60 years a president has made that choice,» Clinton posted on X. «Trump’s goal isn’t to keep Californians safe. His goal is to cause chaos, because chaos is good for Trump.»

Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was brutally mocked on social media for her post on the L.A. riots. (Getty Images)

While there were initially examples of some peaceful protests at the start of this nearly weeklong chaos, by the start of the weekend, property destruction and violence broke out and devolved into a situation that became increasingly violent over the next few days. Several officers were injured during the riot, which included rocks and other projectiles thrown at them, and dozens of people were arrested related to the protests and rioting.

Looting has also been an issue, as has property damage, and on Tuesday evening Democrat Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass instituted a citywide curfew.

In a rare intraparty dissent, Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., criticized his own party this week for failing to adequately condemn the violence in Los Angeles.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP   

«This is anarchy and true chaos,» the Pennsylvania Democrat said in a Monday post on X alongside a picture of cars that had been destroyed by fire. «My party loses the moral high ground when we refuse to condemn setting cars on fire, destroying buildings and assaulting law enforcement.»

«I unapologetically stand for free speech, peaceful demonstrations and immigration,» Fetterman added. «But this is not that.»