Police arrested eight protesters of the Peleg Yerushalmi faction and prevented yeshiva boys belonging to the group from entering Ashkelon as they attempted to demonstrate against a senior Military Police official on Thursday evening.
Hundreds of yeshiva students set out to protest following the arrest and detention of yeshiva students who attempted to evade the IDF draft.
Demonstrators initially sought to gather on Peninat Hayam Street in Ashkelon, outside the residence of a Military Police operations officer identified as Mr. Yamin.
After police blocked the protesters from reaching the site, demonstrators moved to the city entrances. The police then restricted access to and from Ashkelon during the protest.
Police have blocked the northern entrance to Ashkelon from Route 4, including Menachem Begin and Yitzhak Shamir roads, following protests, the Ashkelon Municipality said.
Access to and from the city remains open from the south via Ben Gurion Boulevard and Chaim Bar Lev Boulevard, the municipality added.
Who is the Peleg Yerushalmi faction?
The Peleg Yerushalmi faction follows a more conservative ideology than the mainstream Lithuanian Haredi community, though it is less extreme than groups such as Neturei Karta. A key point of dispute is the faction’s directive for yeshiva members not to report to the IDF recruitment bureau to obtain “his art and teaching” status, which exempts them from military service.
As a result, many faction members are considered to be evading recruitment, and from time to time, some are arrested. The faction holds demonstrations whenever someone who does not show up is arrested and has even established dedicated support organizations for these young men.
Regarding student entry into the labor market, the faction takes a conservative stance relative to the mainstream, and its male members are less likely to participate.
Although in the pre-split Lithuanian world, it was customary to receive government budgets for educational institutions, some of the faction’s educational institutions oppose receiving State funding for fear of government intervention in the curriculum.
Peggy Cidor contributed to this report.