Overview
- Former Sephardic Chief Rabbi Yitzhak Yosef is expected to lead a large, prayer‑focused rally near the Halichot Moshe institutions in Bnei Brak’s Ramat Aharon neighborhood, organizers said Thursday.
- Organizers and Rabbi Shabtai Levi say the event was called in response to recent arrests of yeshiva students accused of draft evasion and to protest what they view as harsh enforcement actions.
- Organizers have framed the gathering as nonviolent and an occasion of mourning likened to Tisha B’Av, and they say it will emphasize prayer rather than road blockades or confrontations.
- The mobilization broadens the haredi response to draft enforcement and increases political strain on the government as parties in the haredi camp press for legal fixes and threaten parliamentary maneuvers.
- Past protests have already disrupted roads and rail service and led to clashes with police, so authorities’ crowd control choices and the rally’s size will be key to whether the standoff escalates further.