On July 15, the Israeli Supreme Court froze the implementation of a law passed on July 14 that banned the arrest of ultra-Orthodox draft dodgers and suspended criminal proceedings against those already arrested until January 2027, The Times of Israel reported the same day. The Israeli government also passed a Basic Law on July 13 that exempts ultra-Orthodox Jews from military service as long as they are studying the Torah.

The IDF has said it faces a manpower shortage of up to 8,000 combat troops following years of war in Gaza, Lebanon and Syria, as well as against Iran. According to the IDF, around 72,000 ultra-Orthodox men aged 18-24 are eligible for service. However, the current government is reliant on the ultra-Orthodox to hold its coalition together and build a fresh one after elections in the fall, so appeasing these groups by extending draft exemptions is a key government priority. The ultra-Orthodox have enjoyed military exemptions since the foundation of Israel in 1948, though they accounted for a substantially smaller percentage of the population then, and the exemptions were never intended to be an open-ended state-backed lifestyle.