JERUSALEM (JTA) — Hundreds of haredi Orthodox protesters took part in a second day of demonstrations against the jailing of a yeshiva student who refused to heed a military draft notice.
The yeshiva student was imprisoned on Sunday for two weeks after failing to present himself at an Israel Defense Forces enlistment center.
During Thursday’s demonstrations in Kikar HaShabbat in Jerusalem, protesters set trash bins alight and threw stones at police. Haredi protesters also demonstrated peacefully Wednesday in front of the IDF’s Prison 6.
The jailed yeshiva student is a follower of Rabbi Shmuel Auerbach, who has instructed his students not to appear at induction centers after receiving their call up notices.
The student was reportedly first called for IDF service in 2012. At the time, the Tal Law, which allowed haredi men to defer army service indefinitely, was still in effect. The law was invalidated by Israel’s Supreme Court in February 2012. The student was reportedly obliged to present himself for enlistment when he was called again at the end of 2012.
