Extremist sect threatens protests after yeshiva student arrested for IDF desertion

The extremist ultra-Orthodox Jerusalem Faction threatened on Wednesday to hold demonstrations across the country and block roads during rush hour to protest the arrest of a 23-year-old man for alleged military desertion.

The man from the central city of Bnei Brak, reportedly a student at the Ponevezh Yeshiva, was detained by military police after he failed to turn up to the Israel Defense Forces recruiting office, according to Hebrew media reports.

The Haredi population of Israel overwhelmingly opposes performing mandated national civil or military service, seeing it as a way for secular forces to potentially draw away its members.

In recent years, there have been several large protests against the IDF draft by the Jerusalem Faction, an anti-Zionist sect.

The drafting of ultra-Orthodox men into the military has long been highly controversial, and even more so in recent months, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s hardline government planning a law to facilitate increased exemptions for Haredim from military service.

The two Haredi parties in the coalition, United Torah Judaism (UTJ) and Shas, have for weeks been threatening to topple the government if the military draft law isn’t passed as soon as possible, according to various reports citing anonymous officials.

However, a number of lawmakers from the premier’s Likud party reportedly object to the potential legislation.

According to Hebrew media reports, Netanyahu has pledged to the ultra-Orthodox parties that a legislative memorandum for the draft bill would be previewed in the Knesset’s upcoming winter session in October.

The government’s tentative proposal would lower the age of final exemption from the army from the current 26 to 23 or 21.

While soldiers are generally drafted from age 18, many yeshiva students claim academic deferments and are thought to remain in religious study programs longer than they otherwise would in order to dodge the draft until they reach the age at which they can be permanently exempt.

By lowering the permanent exemption age, some members of the government believe it would encourage those Haredi men to leave the yeshiva and enter the workforce at a younger age.

Defense Minister Yoav Gallant has long been reported to support reducing the age of exemption to 23, but on condition that another bill is passed that would give additional benefits to soldiers and veterans, handing combat soldiers and others in essential roles a significant pay raise while soldiers in nonessential positions would serve less time.

Objections to the draft law have been heard from top military officials. Earlier this month, IDF Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi said Israel must continue the so-called “people’s army” model — one in which all citizens are meant to serve in the military.

In 2017, the High Court of Justice invalidated a conscription law that gave sweeping exemptions to full-time religious scholars. A series of extended deadlines by which to legislate a new enlistment law expired at the end of July. In turn, Gallant ordered the IDF in June to not draft ultra-Orthodox men until March 31, 2024. By then, the coalition expects that a bill exempting the ultra-Orthodox will have passed.

Michael Bachner and Emanuel Fabian contributed to this report.