Tel Aviv, Nov. 20 -- Israel's High Court of Justice on Wednesday ordered the Israeli government to develop a policy within 45 days to enforce military conscription for yeshiva students, including criminal sanctions against those who refuse to comply.

The unanimous ruling came hours after key rabbis threw their support behind controversial legislation that would enshrine exemptions.

A five-justice panel, led by the court's Vice President, Justice Noam Solberg, sharply criticised the government and state agencies for what the ruling described as a near-total failure to enforce the law. "The conduct of the state authorities is not far from a complete renunciation of the enforcement of the draft obligation for members of the Haredi public,"...