A Haredi draft deserter who was arrested Monday near Ofakim was sentenced to 14 days in military prison, according to a desk-reviewed report by activist Eli Hirshman. The Ratzefnikim faction announced it will hold a protest Tuesday.
A Haredi draft deserter arrested Monday evening near Ofakim was sentenced Tuesday to 14 days in military prison, activist Eli Hirshman reported in a desk-reviewed report. The Ratzefnikim faction, a hardline Haredi group opposed to military conscription, announced it would hold a protest Tuesday in response.
The arrest and sentence are the latest in a series of confrontations between Haredi activists and Israeli authorities over conscription. As The Zioneer reported over the past week, protests have spread to multiple cities, with hundreds of protesters blocking roads and confronting police. One previous arrest involved a deserter who turned out not to be Haredi. In another case, a Gur Hasidic sect member was arrested, prompting that community's first protest march outside Military Prison 10.
The 14-day sentence is shorter than a 40-day term issued by a military court to another Haredi deserter earlier in June. The details of the arrest and the identity of the detainee remain unconfirmed from official sources. The duration and location of the planned Tuesday protest have not been specified.
3 developments
- StrongMilitary court sentences 40 days to Haredi deserter, son of Jerusalem faction official
- DevelopingHaredi activists block Highway 4 in Ashdod, force police to release draft deserter
- StrongHaredi protesters block Gilat Junction after extremist mobilization to prevent draftee arrest
- StrongHundreds of Haredim block police in Ashdod to prevent arrest of draft deserter — who is not Haredi
Source and signal
- Internal intake