Welcome to The Times of Israel's Daily Briefing, your 20-minute audio update on what's happening in Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish world.

Political reporter Sam Sokol and reporter Sue Surkes join host Amanda Borschel-Dan for today's episode.

The Knesset came back from spring break last week and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s ultra-Orthodox coalition partners have been pushing for the passage of legislation enshrining military exemptions for their community, after the High Court ruled in June last year that the dispensations, in place for decades, were illegal since they were not based in law. The legislation has long been held up in the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, whose chairman, Yuli Edelstein (Likud), has pledged that he will “only produce a real conscription law that will significantly increase the IDF’s conscription base.” Sokol unpacks this complicated situation.

Surkes reports on Magen 48, an initiative to train civil defense teams at 66 localities within the Gaza border area — including the city of Sderot — and raise their skill set to that of IDF fighters.

We then learn about "She-Rise," a program that teaches women in the western Negev how to leverage their skills and create change in their communities.

Check out The Times of Israel's ongoing liveblog for more updates.

For further reading:

‘The final deadline’: Could the IDF conscription crisis bring down Netanyahu’s government?

After October 7, IDF said to increase penalties for deserters, but not draft dodgers

Edelstein urges ‘real solution’ as work set to begin on revising Haredi draft bill

IDF joins forces with NGO to turn community security teams into lean fighting machines

Subscribe to The Times of Israel Daily Briefing on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts. This episode was produced by the Pod-Waves and video edited by Thomas Girsch.

IMAGE: Haredi Jews protest and clash with police during a protest against the drafting of ultra-Orthodox Jews to the Israeli army, Jerusalem, May 5, 2025. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)

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