Protests erupt as Israel's Haredim face military conscription

Clashes erupted between Israeli police and ultra-Orthodox Jews on Sunday, as the Israeli military sent out the first 1,000 new draft orders to male members of the Haredi community.

Hundreds of Haredi Jews blocked Route 4 near Bnei Brak, a major ultra-Orthodox town east of Tel Aviv, according to the Yedioth Ahronoth daily.

The protesters blocked the highway in all directions, demanding the cancellation of the draft orders, which they view as an "assault on their traditions and way of life", the newspaper reported.

The draft orders are part of 7,000 expected to be issued to the Haredim in the coming days, approved by Defence Minister Yoav Gallant before his dismissal earlier this month.

Earlier in the day, Israeli opposition leader Yair Lapid called for denying funding and passports to any ultra-Orthodox Jews refusing military service.

Explicit orders

The Haredim oppose conscription, despite a Supreme Court ruling in June that imposed mandatory military service on them, as with other Israeli citizens.

Parties in the ruling coalition are pushing for a law to ensure that around 60,000 religious Jews can continue to avoid military service annually.

Recently, Lapid and his supporters have explicitly called on newly appointed Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz to issue conscription orders for the Haredim.

Haredi Jews make up about 13 percent of Israel's population of 9.9 million and typically do not serve in the military, dedicating their lives to studying the Jewish holy book, the Torah.

Israeli law requires all Israelis over 18 to serve in the military, and the Haredi exemption has been a contentious issue for decades.