Eight draft dodgers and deserters were arrested during the month of September, out of 15 proactive arrest attempts, according to the IDF. That amounts to just 0.01% of the roughly 80,000 draft dodgers and deserters currently registered, the overwhelming majority of whom are members of the Haredi community.
The IDF Spokesperson's Office released this information on Tuesday afternoon as it sought to clarify the issue of arrests of deserters and draft dodgers after the spokeperson contradicted himself in a response earlier in the day, acknowledging: “We deliberately did not proactively arrest deserters.”
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Police leave, deserter’s supporters celebrate
(Photo: Used under Section 27A of the Copyright Law)
“During the High Holidays, in accordance with the situational assessment, policing teams were reinforced and preparations stepped up for the arrest of draft dodgers and deserters at various border crossings, in addition to routine operations and presence,” the IDF said. “All these operations require planning, preparation and the allocation of appropriate resources. During the High Holidays, more than 200 deserters and draft dodgers were proactively arrested at border crossings.”
In most cases, these were Haredi men seeking to travel to Uman, Ukraine, who were arrested and have since been released.
“At the same time, the Military Police also carried out proactive arrests, all in coordination with the Israel Police,” the military said. “During September, the Military Police Corps made 15 proactive attempts to arrest deserters and draft dodgers, resulting in eight arrests. The IDF will continue to act resolutely to ensure equal enforcement of the law against all offenders.”
Meanwhile, police are blaming the conduct of Military Police officers for the chaos that erupted overnight in Modi’in. Police say the soldiers who arrived to arrest a deserter at his parents’ home in a non-Haredi neighborhood lingered at the scene and did not immediately leave with the detainee. That allowed hundreds of Haredim to arrive, surround them and even break into the building, terrifying its residents.
The deserter ultimately was not taken into custody after the Haredi protesters agreed not to harm the Military Police officers only if they pledged not to arrest him.
Attempt to arrest the deserter
(Used under Section 27A of the Copyright Law)
The deserter, it should be noted, activated “Black Alert,” a Haredi network aimed at preventing the arrest of yeshiva students. Black Alert has been behind a series of similar riots since the outbreak of the war but, for some reason, has yet to face any action.
Police in the Shfela District reviewed the overnight events and acknowledged that “the rioters understand that they have the upper hand over the police and the law.”
The police officer injured during the attempted arrest of a deserter in Modi’in
The police review found that, contrary to procedure, the small Military Police force that arrived at the scene did not immediately remove the deserter after he was apprehended, ynet has learned. Instead, the officers gave him time to prepare to leave. As he stalled, rioters began gathering at the scene, and only then were police called in to help extract the military force and restore order.
Police officials also said the decision to release the deserter and issue him an order to resolve his military status was made by the IDF, not the police. Police said they acted at the IDF’s request, dispatching a large number of officers to the scene to help carry out the military’s decision.
'My husband grabbed a gun': Modi’in residents recount night of chaos
Residents of the building experienced the bizarre reality firsthand and struggled to describe what they had endured.
“The Haredim violated my home and the homes of the other residents,” one neighbor said. “This is our private home, the safest place for us and our children, and it was left completely exposed. It took the police a long time to restore order.”
In conversations with ynet, neighbors described the events as a “pogrom.” The rioters entered the building through the main entrance and parking garage, moved between floors, banged on apartment doors and shouted, “We will die rather than enlist.”
According to residents, they began calling police at 12:30 a.m., but a sufficient number of officers did not arrive until around 1:30 a.m.
“It took the police a long time to arrive and it was complete lawlessness,” one neighbor said. “The officers were simply afraid and could not bring the crowd under control until the riot police arrived.”
Another neighbor said: “I felt like they were inside my home, in my living room. I thought they were Arabs disguised as Haredim, so my husband grabbed his gun and we ran with the children to the safe room.”
One neighbor said rioters arrived on buses and gathered below the building.
“We woke up terrified. My daughter thought they were carrying out an October 7 in Modi’in. Everyone in the residents’ WhatsApp group was terrified. No one understood what was happening. We locked the doors and barricaded ourselves inside our homes. Then the fire alarm went off and we were afraid the building was burning until we realized they had activated the smoke detector.”
Neighbors said the rioters struck a policewoman in the head with a flowerpot. She was bleeding from the head and was taken into one of the apartments until a Magen David Adom team arrived and treated her.
A 12-year-old girl who lives in the building and had gone down to the lobby said: “It was scary and I didn’t sleep all night. That’s why I didn’t go to school Tuesday.”
The mother of the deserter, whose last name is Lieberman, sent an apology to her neighbors in the building’s WhatsApp group: “I know you are all very angry, and understandably so, which is why I was afraid to respond until now. I want you to know that I apologize from the bottom of my heart. This is not who I am and, truthfully, it is not who my son is either. Unfortunately, he was taken advantage of, even if he does not realize it right now. I am opposed to any form of violence or vandalism.”
“It is important to me that you know that I did not call them (nor did my son, who only called a rabbi to ask about the deferment they had arranged for him, and apparently everything developed from there). We certainly did not give anyone the code, keys or any other assistance that could encourage the violence.
“In fact, I was also a victim of this violence because they nearly tore my door off its hinges. I am truly sorry for all the distress this caused. My son chose a different path from mine (my son chose a different path from mine, and probably from that of most of the building’s residents). I served as an officer in the IDF, my daughter was also an infantry officer and my other son is a combat soldier in Yahalom [the IDF Combat Engineering Corps’ elite special operations unit].
“My second son chose a different path, but he is still a decent, good young man who helps anyone in need, even if that may not seem so to you right now. He does not live with me but stays here as a guest. None of us anticipated this scenario. In fact, the two of us were already dressed and ready to leave with the officers when everything deteriorated from there.”
Modi’in-Maccabim-Reut Mayor Haim Bibas called the events “disgraceful,” adding: “The city will not tolerate the intrusion and barbaric behavior of draft dodgers. The police and the military must provide answers about their conduct and, above all, their lack of preparedness overnight. How does an operation to arrest a deserter end without an arrest, while the rioters celebrate?
“In my view, this outcome is a serious failure that sends a dangerous message: Anyone who uses enough force can thwart law enforcement.”