Jerusalem Faction Plans Protest on Highway 4 Following Law Suspension on Draft Deferrals

The extremist faction within the Jerusalem ultra-Orthodox community, led by Rabbi Tzvi Friedman’s students, announced plans to hold a protest today at 5 p.m. The demonstration is in response to the High Court of Justice’s conditional injunction suspending the recently passed law granting immunity to ultra-Orthodox draft evaders. While the exact location of the protest has not been disclosed, police anticipate that protesters will attempt to block Highway 4 in the afternoon, disrupting traffic in central Israel.

The law, which was approved after intense parliamentary debate, aimed to freeze arrests of yeshiva students evading military service for five months while their status is resolved. However, opposition parties quickly filed petitions against the law’s enactment, leading the Supreme Court to issue a temporary injunction delaying its implementation. Justice Groskopf stated, "A temporary order is hereby issued suspending the Security Service Law until further decision."

Despite the coalition’s support for the law as a necessary step toward a permanent draft arrangement, several coalition members, including Dan Illouz, Yuli Edelstein, and Sharren Haskel, voted against it. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu did not attend the vote. The protest reflects ongoing tensions surrounding the draft exemption issue and the ultra-Orthodox community’s resistance to military conscription reforms.