Clashes erupt in Tel Aviv amid protests over conscription of ultra-Orthodox Jews

By Anadolu staff

TEL AVIV, Israel (AA) - Clashes erupted between Israeli police and ultra-Orthodox protesters in Tel Aviv on Tuesday amid protests against the conscription of their community to the military.

Hundreds of ultra-Orthodox Jews, or Haredi, gathered outside an army event on the conscription of members of their community into the military, Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper reported.

"You will be killed and won’t pass,” chanted protesters as they tried to block the entrance to the building and prevent attendees from crossing.

Police called additional reinforcements and erected additional barriers to prevent protesters from storming the site.

For months, the army has faced a personnel shortage amid its ongoing war in Gaza since Oct.7, military raids in the West Bank and cross-border clashes with Lebanese group Hezbollah.

Last month, Israel's Supreme Court mandated the drafting of Haredi Jews into the army and banned financial aid to religious institutions whose students refuse military service.

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

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

Flouting a UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate cease-fire, Israel has faced international condemnation amid its continued brutal offensive on Gaza since an Oct. 7, 2023 attack by Hamas.

At least 39,400 Palestinians have since been killed, mostly women and children, and nearly 91,000 injured, according to local health authorities.

Over nine months into the Israeli onslaught, vast tracts of Gaza lie in ruins amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water and medicine.

Israel is accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice, which ordered it to immediately halt its military operation in the southern city of Rafah, where more than 1 million Palestinians had sought refuge from the war before it was invaded on May 6.