The bill originally equated study of the Jewish Torah with military service, which could be used to justify ultra-Orthodox men's exclusion from mandatory enlistment. The relevant clause was removed, however, leaving the bill's legal rationale in dispute and its scope undefined

As the opposition's leading hope, Gadi Eisenkot should answer the questions others avoid: Will he return displaced Palestinians to their homes? Will he order the army to stop shielding violent Jewish settlers?

Activists told Haaretz that while Shin Bet recruiters initially asked them to 'keep an eye on right-wing activists,' they believe the security service was ultimately seeking to recruit them as informants in an effort to gather information on protests and other activists