Jerusalem – Thousands of people from the ultra-Orthodox community gathered in Jerusalem’s Mea Shearim neighborhood in the early hours of Monday morning to protest against plans to draft haredim into national service.
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Police estimated that at least five thousand men, women and children turned out at Kikar Shabbat, where leading rabbis of the anti-Zionist Edah Haredit organization led impassioned prayers to “avert the decree of army enlistment.”
Among the rabbis who attended the event: Toldos Aharon Rebbe, The rabbi of Eidah HaCaredit Rabbi Tuvia Weiss , Rabbi Shmuel Auerbach , Rabbi Mosha Sternbuch, Rabbi Moshe Tzdokah.
“We are the true soldiers of the Jewish people,” said Rabbi Moshe Shternbach, head of the Edah Haredit’s rabbinical court, of the thousands of haredim studying in yeshivot. “A soldier who abandons his post is considered a traitor, and so to with us it is forbidden to leave one’s post.”
“The Zionists expelled the Arabs from the Land of Israel, what right do they have to disturb those who study Torah?” continued Shternbach. “The only merit we have to be in this place is the merit of Torah and mitzvot, yet this they want to take from us.”
The highest authority of the Edah Haredit, Rabbi Tuviah Weiss, also addressed the crowd, telling parents not to despair and not to be afraid of the forces of the state.
“We will not allow them to take yeshiva students to the army or the police,” said Weiss. “It is incumbent on us to give up our lives and not to stray from the path. This is our task, to teach our children the value of self-sacrifice for the sake of the Torah.”
Weiss added that ideas proposed such as integrating Torah study with military service are also unacceptable.
Also present at the demonstration was one of the most senior rabbis of the mainstream haredi community, Rabbi Shmuel Auerbach.
“We have to give up our lives against a decree which is part of our existence,” he declared. “It’s not possible that they will enter the world of Torah with compromises of quotas [for the number of yeshiva students exempt from national service], or that they can tell us who is an exceptional student [who can get an exemption] and who has to enlist. We can’t give them a foot in the door in our place.”
The Eda Haredit leaders who were assembled on a platform overlooking the square led traditional mourning prayers typically said on fast days and times of distress for the Jewish people, and the shofar was blown intermittently during the various prayers and supplications.
Some of the rabbis and crowd members wore sackcloth draped over their clothes, and small sachets of ashes were handed which the demonstrators sprinkled on themselves as a sign of mourning.
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Photo Credit: Shmuel Ben Yishai for News 24
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Sad to see Rav Shmuel Auerbach on the list. Unfortunately, he is deeming himself irrelevant as a possible future leader.
I never understood why they wear potato sacks when they protest against something?
This is so wrong on so many levels. Using a pasuk from Esther giving the feeling that the country they live in, that supports their lifestyle is asking them to contribute something in return is the kingdom of haman. What Torah are these so called gedolim teaching? Their dress bemoan their desire to continue a life style of being supported by a government they despise asking other citizens to sacrifice their children so that they could sit and offer nothing in return. Demonstrate in a manner that gives pride to Torah. Explain to me why my child should defend your existence. Why my child must stand guard at the border in the cold of the night and heat of the summer afraid this will be his last. When I see these pictures I am ashamed that you are my brother.
wow wow!!!!! hashem yaazor that this gzeira will be mevutal.
They say that a picture is worth a thousand words. I think it is inappropriate to wear sackcloth. Joining the army is not a black and white issue that is against the Torah, indeed there is the case of Milchemes Rishus that everyone must join. It is no wonder why the average Israeli think very low of Frum Yidden. But what is more supprising is that fact that important Rabbonim joined. Going in to the army does not cause you to give up one iota of Yiddishkiet, and it is possible to keep Yiddishkiet, Kaloh V’chamura. These pictures are indeed very sad.
I’m sorry but they SHOULD serve in the army like everyone else. There is Nahal Haredi, they can serve and learn Torah at the same time.
teshuva. tefila. utzedaka….etc.
The answer is NOT to put the draft dodgers in jail. Why shuld the State continue to house and feed them?
The real solution is to cut off ALL funding to Cheredim – both Litvishe and Chasidishe. That means stop the payments to the Yeshivas, Kollels, and individual families.
If they want to move their “Torah Centers” to Lakewood or Antwerp or Switzerland, so be it.
Baruch HaShem we will have remaining in Eretz Yisrael many National Religious and CHARDAL talmidim and talmidot who will keep the flame of Torah burning.
What a kiddush hashem…. The jewish people will anyway NOT join in the army, we are jewish & we will sit in learn like hashem teache’s us
If Torah study cannot protect them from being drafted how do they expect Torah study to protect them from missiles and enemy attack
If the chareidim really wanted to punish Israel, they would join the army en-mass. The army doesn’t know what it would be in for! And all the naggers complaining that they don’t join the army would be silenced.
Sorry, but I think the Eidat Hachreidas used up their protests for a while. Everything in Meah Sharim turns into a protest. From the higher price of cottage cheese, to the pick up of garbage, I’m pretty sure we’ve all seen our share of protesting for a while. #theboywhocriedwolf.
The charedim were here before the medina, and they don’t need to be dictated to by kofrim how to serve the Jewish people. The charedim contribute the most to Israel’s security, as they have the most children. Even if the medina would have the most powerful army in the world, would the Jewish population be the minority, the medina would loose their ability to rule the land. Demographics is Israel’s biggest threat to security. Contrary to popular opinion, a Jew can serve the Jewish people without expelling thousands of Jewish families from their homes. Those who believe the falsehoods depicting charedim as economic parasites are ignorant of economics, as well as the laws of shmiras haloshon, and are hateful of the children of G-d.
Without the charedim of just a few generations ago, their would be no Jewish population today. There are virtually no Jews that don’t have charedi great grandparents, as the descendents of the non-charedim intermarry and assimilate. It is primarily the charedim that are insuring the future of the Jewish people.
If they do not want to enlist, that is fine. However, at the very least, show hakoras hatov to those that do enlist and fight and die for them.
maybe if we saw other results of Haredi segregation than stoning cars on Shabbos there would be more support for exempting Yeshiva boys from serving. In the meantime, we have to get back to the old Am Yisroel as in biblical times, when all were equal before the Lord and everyone relied upon emunah to survive. This nonsense of non-yeshiva boys doing the fighting and dying for the Haredim has to stop. It is tearing apart the state because of the underlying resentment. Some go into Yeshiva just to avoid the draft and some go abroad to study. This has been nothing but a government sanctioned form of treason. There is no excuse for not serving your country – NONE.
Who are you calling kofrim #14 ? How dare you! You call the ones who SUPPORT Torah learning with their taxes and who PROTECT Torah learners with their bodies Kofrim? And you dare to lecture us about loshon hara? You are the kofer! My 19 year old son is learning 12-15 hours a day this year and IY”H next year, and then he will join the army to fulfill a valuable chessed to am yisroel. Just because men between the ages of 20 and 25 will spend time in the army, it doesn’t mean that Torah learning will compromised in Eretz Yisroel. WHAT ABOUT THE BOYS aged 13-20! They learn all day. What about the avareichim in their thirties and forties and fifties? What about the thousands of retired men, now grandfathers, who spend their days learning?
What you say in NOT emes.
I’m confused if sitting and learning in lieu of fighting saves klal yisroel in times of war against an enemy that is out to kill us, then kal vechomer sitting and learning when you have a problem with the govt should save us from the gov’t’s decrees. Why the need to protest (anytime!!)? Sounds a little hypocritical.
I have a great idea to solve all the problems…
those yungeleit that leave the beis medrash to riot, throw diapers, spit at police and cars, burn garbage etc… obviously don’t need to be in the beis medrash — they should be rounded up and forced into national service (not the army chas v’sholom with all its pritzus)
Its a win win solution…. those who need to learn will stay in the beis medrash. Those who have time to otherwise be on the street will do national service.
Less violence on the street.
Those learning in the beis medrash will use their koychas of kedusha to save us from the gov’t’s decrees (without the need to riot, just like they save us in times of war)
Those on the street will be able to channel their batlonus tendencies towards national service, making both the gov’t and the secular population happy
and making a kiddush HaShem in the process.
AND we’ll have SHalom al Yisroel!
Shas Party Chairman Eli Yishai, who has already expressed harsh criticism of attempts to find an alternative to the Tal Law, has now characterized efforts to draft the Ultra-Orthodox as “bloodshed, incest, and idolatry” – three acts expressly forbidden by Judaism.
“We will not allow them to take yeshiva students to the army or the police”
But we most definitely do allow the taking of funding from the evil Zionists.
“It is incumbent on us to give up our lives and not to stray from the path”
But we have no respect for those who have given up their lives for us.
If they can spend hours protesting, then they could spend some time doing national service.
““The Zionists expelled the Arabs from the Land of Israel, what right do they have to disturb those who study Torah?” continued Shternbach. “
Umm, doesnt that bother anyone??
Again I say to you all, I’ll make a deal with you. WE (the Chiraydim) will join the army for weekend duty, if the Chiloynim will do weekend duty in a Yishiva! Fair?
I think instead of being drafted they should be commited into a lunatic asylem,theese extreemests think others will work and die for them to enjoy this life and the imaginary after life.
Try hard as they might, they will never be able to conscript loyal Torah Jews. I don’t know exactly what and how is going to happen and not happen, but I have complete emuna that the loyal Torah Jews will not be subjected to the immorality of life in the military.
This has a better chance of bringing the final Redemtion then having desecrators of shabos or people whose goal is to turn all of klal yisroel into a Nation like other Nations.
i call fake on the pictures…
If there were (1500??) burlap sacks distributed and 5000 people showed up then the pictures should show at least show some people wearing burlap. Many pictures are just a sea of black! No burlap!
Is the editor sure they aren’t being duped with pictures from other events??
just for everyone to know whenever the medina starts up with the yeshivas that’s when the Arabs start up
perhaps if the chareidim will be treated in the army with a bit more modesty they might reconsider. but with whats going on today, like soldiers being forced to listen to female singers, i highly doubt that.
None of my business, but even I can see this is a critical fight for the State of Israel. We cannot even begin to see the effects a decision (any decision) will have in twenty or thirty years.
It looks like most posters here don’t understand the true reason for the Eidah’s opposition to army service. It is not because of learning Torah. It is not because of immorality in the army. It is because we are against the existence of the state and the existence of its army. We are conscientious objectors to its wars and most countries have laws exempting such people from army service.
So no, we are not learning while someone else is fighting and dying for us, because according to our ideology they should not be there either. Eretz Yisroel should be under a non-Jewish government.
If it were a non-Jewish government we would gladly do our patriotic duty and serve in the army if called, just like we would serve in the American army if drafted.
Any Jew who is against the medinah but would be afraid to live there under a non-Jewish government, and is thus indebted to the IDF for protecting him, is a hypocrite and has no business living there or even visiting.