Haredi protesters blocked major highways and shut down train traffic across central Israel on Wednesday evening, hours after the Knesset advanced a bill to draft ultra-Orthodox yeshiva students. The Jerusalem Post reports that protesters forced their way onto tracks and roadways, halting train services and causing gridlock. Police have issued closure alerts for Highways 6, 4, 1, 444, and 25.
The protest wave over compulsory military service for Haredi men escalated sharply Wednesday evening as demonstrators blocked multiple major highways and halted train traffic across central Israel. The disruptions came hours after the Knesset moved forward on the draft bill, which would gradually end the broad exemptions for yeshiva students — a decades-long political flashpoint.
Police closed sections of Highways 6, 4, 1, 444, and 25, urging drivers to avoid the area. Israel Railways halted services as protesters entered the tracks at multiple points, including the Ganot junction. Crowds swelled at Tel Aviv's Savidor station after earlier cancellations, N12's Hili Keren reported.
As The Zioneer reported earlier Wednesday (18:20 Jerusalem), protests had already spread to several cities following the arrest of draft evaders at a military prison. The blockades mark the most severe disruption yet in the current wave of demonstrations, which began last week after reports of draft-related arrests and the Knesset's legislative push. No arrests or injuries have been reported from the evening's protests.
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