Ultra-Orthodox Jews Block Highway to Protest Israel’s New Mandatory Military Service Ruling

Ultra-Orthodox Jews Block Highway to Protest Israel’s New Mandatory Military Service Ruling
Ultra-Orthodox Jewish men block a highway during a protest against army recruitment in Bnei Brak, Israel, on June 27, 2024. Oded Balilty/AP Photo
|Updated:
0:00

BNEI BRAK, Israel—Hundreds of ultra-Orthodox Jewish men blocked a major highway in central Israel for two hours on Thursday to protest a recent Supreme Court decision ordering young religious men to enlist for military service.

Military service is compulsory for most Jewish men and women in Israel. But politically powerful ultra-Orthodox parties have won draft exemptions for their followers that allow them instead to study in religious seminaries.