Deserter data to be transferred to municipalities, and Jerusalem deputy mayor demands: revoke their benefits
Jerusalem Deputy Mayor Yossi Havilio demanded that Mayor Moshe Lion revoke municipal benefits from deserters and draft dodgers, including daycare subsidies, scholarships, and discounts on cultural and sports events. The letter, sent against the backdrop of Supreme Court rulings, requests that the IDF provide deserter data and establish a reservist fund.
Jerusalem Deputy Mayor Yossi Havilio demanded that Mayor Moshe Lion revoke municipal benefits from deserters and draft dodgers who are residents of the city. In an official letter sent by Havilio together with the "Jerusalem Union" faction, he demanded that the IDF provide data on deserters and draft dodgers, update the municipal criteria for benefits, and establish a "municipal reservist fund" that would receive the saved funds. The benefits in question are daycare and summer camp subsidies, municipal scholarships, and discounts on cultural and sports events. The letter was sent against the backdrop of reports that local authorities are expected to gain access to a government interface for identifying deserters, and following Supreme Court rulings from 2025 and 2026 mandating enforcement of the draft obligation. Jerusalem is the city with the largest concentration of Haredi population in Israel, and 64% of students in the city's Hebrew education system study in Haredi institutions.