Thousands of ultra-Orthodox Jewish men from Mea She’arim in West Jerusalem are protesting against conscription in the Israeli military. They prefer imprisonment over military service following the High Court's decision to end their exemptions.

Jerusalem

Thousands of ultra-Orthodox Jewish men from the Mea She’arim neighborhood of West Jerusalem are protesting against mandatory military conscription in Israel. The demonstrations follow a recent High Court ruling ending exemptions from military service for this community. The decision came after Netanyahu's coalition failed to create a new law to replace the one that was expiring.

This change means that ultra-Orthodox men, who previously argued that military service conflicts with their religious beliefs and studies, are now subject to conscription. The Attorney General's office has directed that at least 3,000 ultra-Orthodox men be drafted immediately. Additionally, the Finance Ministry has been instructed to cease government funding for approximately 63,000 eligible draftees.

The ultra-Orthodox protesters have expressed a preference for imprisonment over joining the Israeli Army. These demonstrations are part of a long-standing opposition from the ultra-Orthodox community against mandatory military service. Reporting on this situation is being handled from outside Israel due to a ban on Al Jazeera by the Israeli government.



Ultra-Orthodox Jews rally against military service

Well, thousands of ultra-Orthodox men demonstrating in the Mea Sherim neighborhood of West Jerusalem against mandatory military conscription. It comes just a week after the High Court's decision saying that those exemptions no longer apply. This has been something that has been in the works since the beginning of the year after Netanyahu's coalition could not come up with a solution for the law that was expiring. They couldn't find a replacement, couldn't get it through within Israel's government, and the High Court ruled that military exemptions are now over. Now, the ultra-Orthodox community has been protesting for months, if not years, against mandatory military service, saying that it goes against their religious beliefs and religious studies. But Israel's High Court decision prompted the Attorney General's office to send a letter to both the Israeli Army and the Finance Ministry to the Israeli military. They said that at least 3,000 Orthodox men must be drafted immediately. And to the Finance Ministry, they said that any of these individuals of the 63,000 who are eligible for the military draft, none of them are now able to receive any sort of government funding, grants, or stipends as part of the High Court ruling. But the ultra-Orthodox men who have been demonstrating say that they would rather go to jail than join the Israeli Army. Alright, Hamda Salhout there reporting to us from Amman in Jordan, because the Israeli government has banned Al Jazeera from reporting in Israel.

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