Leading Sephardic Rabbis Rally Thousands in Bnei Brak Protest Against Yeshiva Students' Arrests

Tonight at 9:30 PM, a major protest rally will take place in Bnei Brak, led by the Sephardic Chief Rabbi of Israel, Rabbi Yitzhak Yosef, against the arrest and military imprisonment of yeshiva students. The demonstration will unfold along Eshkol Avraham and Rabbi Rabinov streets, with prominent rabbis, yeshiva heads, and community leaders joining Rabbi Yosef at the forefront.

Senior members of the Council of Torah Sages, including Rabbi Moshe Maya, Rabbi Shlomo Machpud, and Rabbi Nissim Ben Shimon, have issued a public call urging all Torah scholars, yeshiva students, and every Israelite who fears God to participate in the protest. They cited the "spiritual destruction decrees" threatening Torah students and condemned the imprisonment of diligent learners in "filthy prisons" by harsh authorities simply for studying Torah in the Holy Land.

The rabbis emphasized the sacred obligation of every individual to protest, warning that ignoring this duty would be a grave sin. The rally's organizing message, "Go gather all the Jews," reflects the urgency and scale of the event, which aims to unite the community in defense of religious study and against what they view as unjust state actions.

This protest comes amid heightened tensions over the Israeli military's enforcement of conscription laws on yeshiva students, a sensitive issue within the ultra-Orthodox community. The event is expected to draw thousands, underscoring the deep religious and social divisions surrounding the arrests.