Clashes broke out between Haredi protesters and police in Jerusalem and central Israel on Thursday as officers used stun grenades, batons and mounted units to clear hundreds of demonstrators blocking major roads in protest of renewed arrests of Haredi draft evaders.
At the entrance to Jerusalem, police forcibly removed protesters from the roadway near the Chords Bridge about an hour after the demonstrations began. Footage from the scene showed confrontations as officers used batons and stun grenades during attempts to disperse the crowd.
Haredi protesters clash with police as Highway 4, Jerusalem entrance blocked
(Video: Liran Tamari)
A soldier became trapped in his vehicle amid the blockade and was unable to continue driving. The vehicle was later extracted from the area.
Meanwhile, on Highway 4 near Bnei Brak, police used loudspeakers to order protesters to leave the roadway before moving to disperse them with stun grenades and mounted officers. Even about an hour into the protest, Haredi demonstrators remained seated on the road, chanting, “We will die and not enlist.”
Hundreds of Haredi protesters had begun gathering Thursday afternoon across the Tel Aviv metropolitan area and Jerusalem after demonstrations were called in response to the military’s decision to resume arrests of draft evaders.
Heavy congestion was already reported about an hour before the demonstrations’ announced 4 p.m. start time.
Highway 4 was blocked northbound at the Aluf Sade Interchange and southbound at the Em HaMoshavot Interchange. Police also closed the southbound highway near Bnei Brak, producing severe traffic jams in both directions.
In Jerusalem, hundreds blocked the main entrance to the city near the Chords Bridge, while dozens more gathered on Bar-Ilan Street and disrupted traffic.
(Video: Liran Tamari)
“Jerusalem District police are reinforcing forces at the scene and preparing to enforce public order and clear the roads as necessary,” police said.
Police also disputed reports that a protester had been struck by a vehicle in Jerusalem. Officers said the incident was not a hit-and-run and that the man had “hung onto the vehicle of his own accord,” adding that police had footage supporting that account.
The demonstrations also caused major disruptions to Jerusalem’s light rail network.
At police instruction, the L1 line was temporarily split into two sections, operating between Neve Yaakov and Davidka stations and between Denia Square and Hadassah Ein Kerem. The L3 line was shortened to operate between Malha and the International Convention Center.
The Jerusalem Faction, a hardline Haredi group opposed to military conscription, had called for demonstrations beginning at around 4 p.m. in Jerusalem and the Tel Aviv metropolitan area. Bnei Brak was expected to be the main protest center in central Israel, with another possible demonstration near Ben Gurion Airport.
Unlike many previous demonstrations, which often involve only the group associated with Rabbi Tzvi Friedman, Thursday’s protest was expected to draw participation from across the Jerusalem Faction, potentially making it significantly larger.
Earlier Thursday afternoon, members of the faction attempted to disrupt Shas chairman Aryeh Deri as he addressed an election conference in Modi’in Illit.
(Video: Shilo Fried)
Traffic congestion was reported across large parts of the country during the afternoon, including on highways 1, 2, 4, 6, 40, 41, 65, 70 and 85, as well as Route 471 and several roads in the West Bank. Some delays were linked directly to the demonstrations, while others resulted from accidents or routine congestion.
The protests followed a confrontation earlier in the week in Modi’in, where hundreds of Haredi men gathered overnight after a draft evader activated a community alert system known as “Black Alert” when military police arrived to arrest him.
Protesters entered the building where he had barricaded himself, confronted police sent to disperse them and surrounded military police officers. The standoff ended after negotiations in which protesters agreed to allow the soldiers to leave as long as the draft evader was not arrested.
The IDF recently resumed proactive arrests of draft evaders after a pause of more than two months in military police “home visits.” The military had acknowledged during a meeting with Israel’s attorney general that it had deliberately refrained during that period from proactively arresting Haredi draft evaders.
Large groups of Haredi protesters also prevented the arrest of three draft evaders in different cities overnight.
In Bat Yam, military police arrived to arrest a Haredi draft evader who activated an alert system warning that “the kidnappers have arrived.” Dozens of protesters gathered, and the military police force eventually withdrew without making the arrest. Protesters then celebrated by dancing in the street.
Military police also raided two homes in Dimona overnight in an attempt to arrest yeshiva students required to enlist. The “Black Alert” system was activated there as well, drawing dozens of Haredi protesters who prevented the arrests. As in Bat Yam, demonstrators celebrated after the military police withdrew.