by Jerusalem Post Staff
Video footage seen by The Jerusalem Post shows protesters sitting on the road and blocking vehicles, before being forcefully cleared by police officers.
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A designated Haredi (ultra-Orthodox) draft day was held on Monday at Tel Hashomer recruiting office in order to draft two companies to the IDF's Hashmonaim Brigade.
One of the companies will be for regular service IDF soldiers, and the other will be made up of reservists.
The military commented that this enlistment is intended to support haredim on various combat and combat support tracks that are open to them and to allow them to maintain their haredi lifestyle while performing a meaningful military service.
The framework will offer a meaningful military service uniquely combined with religious studies, providing the soldiers with the opportunity to defend Israel while maintaining their religious commitment, the military added.
Haredi activists protested outside Tel Hashomer on Monday morning to denounce the military's attempts to draft them.
Video footage seen by The Jerusalem Post shows protesters sitting on the road and blocking vehicles, before being forcefully cleared by police officers.
Israel Police referred to the protest as "illegal" while commenting that they "view the right to protest as a cornerstone of a democratic state and allow demonstrations as long as they are conducted within the law."
"However, the police will not allow any disturbances of public order, violations of freedom of movement, or behavior that may endanger public safety," they added.
Religious Zionist Party's Zvi Sukkot attended in support of the haredim drafting, stating, "they came to enlist and give their lives, and there are people here to humiliate and curse them."
מי שהגיע לבקו"ם ללוות את המתגייסים החרדים אל מול המפגינים שמנסים לחסום אותם ולמנוע את גיוסם - ח"כ צבי סוכות מהציונות הדתית@tzvisuccot pic.twitter.com/055yHvOvWe
— שילה פריד🇮🇱 (@shilofreid) April 28, 2025
"I stand here on behalf of the majority of the Jewish people in the face of the disgrace that they are facing here. Shame!" Sukkot added.
Out of the approximately 10,000 draft orders sent over the last two months, only 994 haredim showed up at the draft office, 2,491 are under an arrest warrant for dodging the draft, and 184 were placed under a travel ban preventing them from leaving the country, KAN News reported Monday morning.
However, these numbers are an improvement from the preceding three months, in which 367 haredim showed up at the draft office after 7,014 orders were sent out, while 2,473 arrest warrants and 446 travel bans were issued.
"I would be happy if there was support from the other side (the wider haredi community), but, unfortunately, we have yet to see any change," head of the IDF Personnel Planning Branch Brig.-Gen. Shay Taib told Army Radio.
"We proposed imposing sanctions that affect the individual draft dodgers in their daily lives," Taib continued.
High Court demands explanation on draft dodgers
On Sunday, it was announced that the government and the army have until June 24 to explain to the High Court of Justice why more draft orders have not gone out to eligible haredi (ultra-Orthodox) men, and why sanctions have not been imposed on draft dodgers.
The conditional order issued by the HCJ comes amid a war with no end in sight and troops, especially reservists, who are worn and exhausted by a year-and-a-half of war, that they have put their lives on hold and at risk for. The government’s goal is to have 4,800 haredi draftees a year, which will exponentially rise over the next few years.
The army must create new frameworks for haredi soldiers within the Israel Air Force, the Intelligence Corps, and in the field. The responsibility is on the army to create the framework, and on the haredi community to provide the troops.
Sarah Ben-Nun contributed to this report.
Jerusalem Post Staff
Source: https://www.jpost.com/breaking-news/article-851762
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