Ultra-Orthodox Riots Erupt in Elad After Arrest of Draft Dodger

Massive riots broke out in the city of Elad overnight between Wednesday and Thursday, following the arrest of an ultra-Orthodox draft dodger in Kfar Saba. Friends of the arrested individual, who were students at the Ettinger yeshiva in Elad, blocked the entrance to the city, sparking violent confrontations with police forces. During the clashes, a police officer sustained a head injury from thrown stones and was evacuated for medical treatment. Footage from the scene showed rioters slashing tires on a police vehicle and hanging onto the car of former mayor Yisrael Porush, who arrived and urged them to disperse. Another video captured a garbage bag hitting the head of the commander of the Rosh HaAyin police station. Residents claim at least five yeshiva students were injured by stun grenades fired directly at them while inside the yeshiva premises, with one student hospitalized and others treated at the scene. The draft dodger was apprehended in Kfar Saba for driving without a license. An investigation revealed he was a draft dodger, and military police were summoned to take him to prison. Activists from "Black Flag" initially protested and blocked the Ra'anana junction before the yeshiva students initiated the riots in Elad.