Yechiel Kotainer, a young member of the Gur Hasidic community whose arrest triggered an extraordinary protest wave, was released Sunday evening from the military prison in Kfar Yona. He had served six days of a 10-day sentence and was escorted out by Gur community officials and family members.
Kotainer was arrested last week when he came to the enlistment office to arrange a medical exemption. Despite that purpose, and despite his family’s recent bereavement after the fatal car crash that killed his brother, Yeshiva student Raphael Ari, military authorities ordered him jailed, treating him like a serious offender.
The arrest sparked a rapid and unusually broad mobilization by Gur. On Wednesday, thousands gathered outside Prison 10 at Beit Lid for a mass prayer rally. The Gur rebbe made a rare trip from his home in Jerusalem to attend and support the imprisoned young man. During the gathering, Knesset member Yitzhak Goldknopf recited Psalms, and Rabbi Moshe Chaim Dandrovitz delivered sharply worded protests against what he described as persecution of Torah learners, urging police to focus on criminals and thieves instead.
Kotainer’s release brought relief to the Gur community, which is now preparing a festive welcome for him. He was freed with the help of Rabbi Shimon Shisha, known as the “father of prisoners,” and attorney Menachem Stauber, who entered the case as soon as the arrest became known.
