Thousands Of Ultra-Orthodox Protest Israeli Military Draft
Image by getty images
JERUSALEM (JTA) — Thousands of haredi Orthodox men demonstrated against Israel’s military draft in the streets of a Jerusalem neighborhood.
The protesters filled the streets of Jerusalem’s Geulah neighborhood, located near the central bus station, on Tuesday evening. The Associated Press put the crowd total at about 10,000.
Though the protest was unauthorized, police chose to monitor the proceedings rather than disperse the crowd, which they believe could have led to violence, the Times of Israel reported.
The demonstration reportedly was spurred by the arrest of the son of a haredi rabbi who had failed to show up for his draft summons.
“We lived through the Pharaoh, we lived through the Spanish Inquisition, we lived through Hitler, we’ll outlive you. We’ll fill the prisons the way we filled the Diaspora,” the crowd chanted, according to the AP.
Haredi Orthodox men who are studying in yeshiva are exempt from army service, but they must show up for their draft call in order to receive the exemption.
This is a moment of great uncertainty. Here’s what you can do about it.
We hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, we’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s independent Jewish news this Passover.
This is a moment of great uncertainty for the news media, for the Jewish people, and for our sacred democracy. It is a time of confusion and declining trust in public institutions. An era in which we need humans to report facts, conduct investigations that hold power to account, tell stories that matter and share honest discourse on all that divides us.
With no paywall or subscriptions, the Forward is entirely supported by readers like you. Every dollar you give this Passover is invested in the future of the Forward — and telling the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
The Forward doesn’t rely on funding from institutions like governments or your local Jewish federation. There are thousands of readers like you who give us $18 or $36 or $100 each month or year.
Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
