Police arrested 31 ultra-Orthodox rioters during the day Monday and overnight in protests in Jerusalem and Beit Shemesh against the detainment of Haredi draft-dodgers and IDF deserters.
Protesters threw stones and other objects at police officers, with one policewoman needing medical treatment to her hand after being hit by a stone. They also blocked roads and attacked police physically and verbally.
(אלעזר/דיווחים בזמן אמת | חיים פרנץ | קבוצת "מחאות חרדים - כל מה שקורה")
Most of the rioting centered at HaShabbat Square and on Bar-Ilan road in the capital, as well as on Nehar HaYarden Avenue in Beit Shemesh.
The Haredi protesters were able to block the main entrance to Jerusalem on Monday around noon time for about an hour. In addition, they blocked parts of Highway 1, which connects Tel Aviv to the capital, causing heavy traffic congestion in the area.
Rioters were protesting the arrest of three yeshiva students who were drafted into the army but deserted. They are facing relatively long sentences at military prison.
One of these deserters is the son of one of the more prominent and influential figures in Rabbi Shmuel Auerbach's Jerusalem Faction. The rabbi instructed his followers to continue protesting against the IDF draft, and his students don't show up at the IDF induction center.
(Translated and edited by Yaara Shalom)