The Daily Populous Thursday August 14th, 2025 evening edition
Authored by lemonde.fr and submitted by Constant_Ad7225

Ultra-Orthodox Jewish demonstrators protest against their conscription into the Israeli army and the arrest of religious school students who evaded the draft, in Jerusalem, August 7, 2025. MENAHEM KAHANA / AFP

The ultra-Orthodox newspaper Yated Ne'eman, on Thursday, August 7, headlined on the front page in bold black letters: "War." In Gaza against Hamas? No, against the government of Benjamin Netanyahu, accused of undermining ultra-Orthodox Judaism after the recent arrest of several young haredim (those who "tremble" before God), members of a community that refuses conscription − mandatory for all Jewish citizens in Israel. On Thursday, ultra-Orthodox rabbis thus called for religious mobilization against military mobilization, urging their male followers to demonstrate in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv to condemn attempts to forcibly enlist their youth. Several thousand men responded to the call.

In front of the demonstrators, who danced and sang sacred texts on the outskirts of one of Jerusalem's main Orthodox neighborhoods, Rabbi Moshe Tsadka advocated religious disobedience: "Go to the yeshivas [religious schools], not the army! Those who do not go to the yeshivas should be punished, not those who refuse to serve in the army. God saved us when we left Egypt and gave us the Torah to guide us!" Another rabbi, Yehuda Cohen, addressed the crowd: "We have followed the Torah for the 3,337 years since God gave it to us, and we do not follow the government."

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Patient-Expert-1578 on August 14th, 2025 at 13:04 UTC »

When Israel was founded, Orthodox Jews were a significantly smaller portion of the population and they were given special privileges as a protected class. Fast forward 80 years and now you have a significant portion of the population now within this protected class, and they use their voting power to force their ideals while also hiding behind their protected class, essentially forcing others to do their bidding. Netanyahu courted their vote in order to protect himself from the crimes he has committed. But it’s a double edged sword because a significant portion of Israel feels they should no longer be a protected class.

Icculus80 on August 14th, 2025 at 12:53 UTC »

They also willingly mooch off the government they feel shouldn’t exist because they spend all day learning Torah. These people are fundamental messianists.

Manzhah on August 14th, 2025 at 11:48 UTC »

Aren't these ultra-orthodox generally extremely gung-ho in military matters, but with the expectations that literally everyone but them does the fighting and the dying?