Ultra-Orthodox Protest Road Blockade Sparks Clashes

Members of the Jerusalem Faction, an ultra-Orthodox group, blocked the Yavne interchange on Highway 4 on Sunday morning to protest the arrest of draft dodgers. The police declared the demonstration illegal, reporting that traffic was halted in both directions and that clashes erupted between drivers and protesters. Drivers were advised to avoid the area and use alternative routes.

This incident follows similar protests earlier in the month, where the same group blocked sections of Highway 4 and the entrance to Jerusalem for over two hours, also protesting the arrest of draft dodgers. During those earlier demonstrations, police arrested three protesters in Bnei Brak on suspicion of assaulting officers. In a separate incident in Jerusalem, protesters surrounded a car carrying an ultra-Orthodox soldier, leading police to use stun grenades and batons to extract him. One protester was arrested and another injured in that event.

Earlier on the same day as the Jerusalem incident, protesters disrupted traffic on Jabotinsky Road in Bnei Brak, blocking it in both directions. Approximately 150 protesters gathered near the Mor Institute, chanting slogans against military conscription and directing insults at women passing by. Clashes occurred between drivers and protesters, and further derogatory remarks were made towards a kippah-wearing soldier. Police attempted to forcibly disperse the protesters.