Dozens of Haredim Rush to Help Two Army Draft Evaders Detained in Ashdod

Two 25-year-old men were detained overnight Thursday to Friday at a routine checkpoint at the entrance to Ashdod after returning from a night out. Police realized they were military draft evaders, and the men then called the Haredi hotline "Black Signal," which alerts protesters when draft evaders are arrested. About 100 Haredim quickly arrived at the scene to try to assist them.

A police source said the protesters tried to disrupt police work. "We talked to them and explained that we are not arresting anyone and not enforcing this. We told them the young men are not Haredi at all, they look secular, were wearing tank tops, and there were women in the car," the source said. The officers eventually dispersed the crowd, released the two men, and forwarded a report to the military police.

The Ashdod incident came after a day of widespread disruption in Israel caused by protests from the Jerusalem Faction. On Thursday, Highway 4, Highway 6, and Highway 1 were blocked for about two hours, amid ongoing arrest operations against draft evaders and clashes at the home of Supreme Court Deputy President Noam Solberg, after detainees were transferred to a military prison. The chaos began in the afternoon, before the main protests, with severe traffic jams across central Israel.

Police also blocked roads ahead of the protests, and some Haredim were filmed walking along the shoulder of Highway 4 to the Gannot Interchange, where they then blocked the junction themselves. Train service in the area was later halted because demonstrators were on the tracks. At Gmzu Junction, a police officer was filmed ordering a bus carrying Haredim to stop, warning the driver, "Do not open the door," but the passengers eventually got off and joined the blockade. After about two hours, the extremist protesters were ordered to stop, and the Jerusalem Faction warned that the protests would continue and intensify unless the authorities stopped pursuing yeshiva students.