Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu said that he was prepared to impose personal sanctions on IDF service evaders, during talks with coalation leaders on Thursday.
Earlier Thursday, Netanyahu met with Kadima chairman Shaul Mofaz
for an hour Thursday in continuing attempts to resolve their differences
in replacing the Tal Law, and mandating civilian and military service
for all Israeli citizens.
At end of the meeting they agreed to continue the talks.
Ahead of Netanyahu's meetings with
Mofaz and other faction heads, Coalition chairman Ze'ev Elkin said that
the differences between Kadima and Likud are not that great, saying that
neither are opposed to imposing personal sanctions on those who do not
perform national or military service.
Speaking with Israel Radio
Thursday morning, Elkin asserted that a solution could be found if
Netanyahu makes clear to the ultra-Orthodox (haredi) political
leadership that if no solution is found by August 1, Israel's military
draft law will be applied equally across all sectors.
Elkin
lamenting the lack of progress on the matter, calling it "a shame that
instead of addressing the content, we've been dealing with the process,"
discussing committees instead of sitting down and writing a law.
Discussing
a service mandate for Israeli Arabs, the coalition chairman admitted
that due to the regional conflicts Israel is engulfed in, it is
understandable not to ask Israeli Arabs to service in the military. "But
the moment you start talking about civilian service, work in health
education and welfare... why not?"
"Why does an Arab youth need to go study at university at the age of 18 and a Jewish youngster needs to go work in a hospital?"
"There's no reason why a haredi (youth) can do civilian service and an Arab can't," he repeated.