Background
Free Israel, opposition legislators and parties, the Movement for Quality Government, Brothers and Sisters in Arms, and other petitioners brought five consolidated petitions concerning Amendment No. 28 (Temporary Provision) to the Security Service Law, 2026. The respondents included the Knesset, the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee and its chair, the Israeli government, the defense minister, the attorney general, and, in one petition, the chief of the General Staff.
A nine-justice panel of the Supreme Court, sitting as the High Court of Justice, heard argument on July 28, 2026, in a proceeding described as a hearing on opposition to the issuance of an order nisi. The Court considered the parties’ written and oral submissions.
The Court’s Holding
The Court issued an interim order suspending the entry into force of Amendment No. 28 (Temporary Provision) to the Security Service Law, 2026, “until further decision.”
The decision did not resolve the petitions on the merits or explain the Court’s substantive reasoning. The panel stated that judgment would be delivered promptly, leaving the amendment suspended in the meantime.
Key Takeaways
- The Security Service Law amendment cannot take effect while the interim order remains in force.
- The order followed consideration of written submissions and oral argument before a nine-justice panel.
- The Court made no final merits ruling; a fuller judgment remains forthcoming.
Why It Matters
The order preserves the pre-amendment legal position while the Court considers challenges to legislation governing military service. Its immediate effect is procedural but consequential: implementation of the amendment is halted nationwide pending further judicial action.
Because the Court supplied no merits analysis, the order should not be read as a final determination that the amendment is invalid. The forthcoming judgment will determine the petitions’ disposition and may clarify the constitutional and administrative principles governing the legislation.