From the Liveblog of
Monday, June 1, 2026
Haredi extremists block roads in Jerusalem and Safed over arrest of draft dodgers
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on GoogleSam Sokol is a former political correspondent at The Times of Israel. He was previously a reporter for the Jerusalem Post, Jewish Telegraphic Agency and Haaretz. He is the author of "Putin’s Hybrid War and the Jews"
Ultra-Orthodox demonstrators gather in Jerusalem, Bnei Brak and elsewhere in Israel for what police dub an “illegal” protest of the recent detention of yeshiva students who evaded the IDF draft.
According to the extremist Jerusalem Faction, which organized the demonstrations, protesters have blocked the Ganot Interchange in central Israel as well as the entrances to Jerusalem and Safed. They have also gathered
outside the home of the senior police officer who is thought to have signed off on the arrests of the draft dodgers.
Traffic heading out of the capital is currently being redirected away from the entrance to the city, causing major delays. Public transit has also been impacted.
Police say demonstrators have blocked the entrance to Jerusalem, near the Chords Bridge, along with the Hamazleg Interchange near Netivot. Police say officers are currently attempting to clear the roads and restore order.
The protests were originally slated to be held yesterday afternoon, but were postponed after the extremist Haredi group claimed that negotiations with the IDF on releasing detained draft dodgers were beginning to bear fruit.
Police attempt to remove anti-conscription protesters blocking central Israel's Ganot Interchange. (Credit: David Kesher via the Jerusalem Faction) pic.twitter.com/Hjj24bLWY8
— Sam Sokol (@SamuelSokol) June 1, 2026
The IDF denied the Jerusalem Faction’s statement on Sunday, telling The Times of Israel that no talks were being held on releasing draft dodgers from prison.
The extremist ultra-Orthodox group, numbering some 60,000 members, regularly holds rowdy demonstrations against the military enlistment of yeshiva students and operates a “national alert system” to mobilize wildcat street action when someone spots a draft dodger being arrested.
Members of the group recently rioted outside the home of a noncommissioned officer serving as chief of security of the Beit Lid military prison and broke into the home of the head of the IDF’s Military Police in Ashkelon.
Today’s protests come less than a day after a large group of Haredi protesters broke into a police station compound in Beit Shemesh, rioting and clashing with police officers following the arrest of an ultra-Orthodox draft evader in the city.
Haredi anti-conscription demonstrators outside the Jerusalem home of the head of the Israel Police Traffic Department Chaim Shmueli (The Jerusalem Faction) pic.twitter.com/wuwmlgX6oU
— Sam Sokol (@SamuelSokol) June 1, 2026
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