Amidst military police raids on haredi strongholds in an attempt to arrest yeshiva students who are draft dodgers, a senior Haredi official clarifies that this is the most challenging time for his community.
The recent military police raids on Haredi strongholds have sparked a storm in the Haredi street, and the leadership is not expected to remain silent on this issue for long.
A senior haredi official who spoke with Arutz Sheva claims that this is the most difficult period the haredi community has faced since the founding of the State of Israel.
“Since the establishment of the state, the status of yeshiva students and kollel learners was regulated by law. When the Supreme Court revoked the status of yeshiva students, they were left exposed — but they still relied on the political establishment not to instruct the IDF to arrest yeshiva students,” the official said.
He continued, “Now, this taboo has been broken. Last night in Haifa, there was an attempt to arrest a kollel student who had married a few months ago and is studying in a kollel. He happened to not be home, and his arrest was avoided. But in Tel Aviv, Torah learners who were draft-eligible were arrested.”
In the conversation, the senior official clarified that these actions cannot be ignored for long. “How long can the leaders of Israel remain indifferent to the arrests of yeshiva students? They will not remain silent for long.”
"In the meantime, the haredi representatives have left their coalition positions and are not participating in legislation, but in the public arena, there will be a dramatic escalation if the military police continue arresting yeshiva students and kollel learners," he concluded.