Ultra-Orthodox

Collapse of responsibility in the name of faith - opinion

Parashat Bo warns: true faith demands responsibility, that honoring life means accountability and protecting the vulnerable.

|ByJONATHAN LIEBERMAN
Ultra-Othodox Jewish men block a road and clash with police during a protest against the autopsy of toddlers who died in a daycare, on Tuesday. These protests were not about honoring the dead, but about avoiding accontability, the writer argues.
Ultra-Orthodox Jewish men block a road and clash with police during a protest against the autopsy of toddlers who died in a daycare, in Jerusalem, January 20, 2026

Ultra-Orthodox rioters throw stones, call police 'Nazis' in protests over dead infants' autopsies

Eleven were arrested before protests began to disperse following the High Court of Justice's blocking of the planned autopsies.

|ByJAMES GENN, MIRIAM SELA-EITAM
Ultra-Orthodox Jewish men block a road and clash with police during a protest against the autopsy of toddlers who died earlier in a daycare, in Jerusalem, January 19, 2026.

Ultra-Orthodox Jews protest infants' autopsies in Jerusalem daycare disaster

Police arrested the daycare owner and the caregiver in charge following initial questioning, and both will be brought before a judge on Tuesday as the investigation continues. 

|BySHIR PERETS
Kindergaten owner arrested in Romema, Jerusalem, after two babies died due to illegalities. January, 19.

Israel Police arrest Jerusalem daycare owner, caregiver in charge where two babies died

The court ordered the autopsy, demanded by the Attorney-General's office and the police, while the family of the victims will be able to appeal the decision on Tuesday.

|ByTOBIAS HOLCMAN, DR. ITAY GAL

'Israel has declared war on Torah scholars': Haredi leaders call for global protest

"The State of Israel has declared war on Torah scholars. The Haredi community will launch a global battle like no other,” the leaders of the Haredi community said.

AUGUST 6, 2025ByJERUSALEM POST STAFF
Haredim protest against the IDF draft outside Tel Hashomer recruitment base, April 28. 2025.

Israel needs a reimagined educational system that teaches how to disagree respectfully - opinion

The Hebrew state education system must now awaken to its historic responsibility. It must renew its commitment to the values of a Jewish and democratic state.

AUGUST 3, 2025ByOFEK MEIR
Ultra orthodox jewish kids seen the first day of school at an Ultra-Orthodox school in Neve Yaakov Neighborhood of Jerusalem on August 9, 2021.

Israeli Jews need to see people as individuals, not labels, to fight internal division - opinion

In a wide-ranging discussion on the Inspiration from Zion podcast, speakers unpacked how to fight current trends such as Jewish division in Israel.

AUGUST 3, 2025ByJONATHAN FELDSTEIN
Worshipers sit on low surfaces in mourning on Tisha B’Av at the Western Wall last year. The understanding that baseless hatred was the cause of the Temples’ destruction underscores how our enemies can defeat us only when we are disunited.

Grapevine: Between then and now

Movers and shakers in Israeli society.

AUGUST 3, 2025ByGREER FAY CASHMAN
STEPHEN B. KLEIN

How the Iran war impacted Israel's haredi conscription debate - opinion

The war with Iran has created ripples in Israel's domestic social and political fabric, particularly regarding the debate over ultra-Orthodox military service.

JULY 22, 2025ByNIMROD KOREN
HAREDI DEMONSTRATORS protest in Jerusalem, earlier this year, against serving in the military. The decreased immediate need for substantial expansion of the army’s ranks lessens the pressure to accelerate haredi conscription, says the writer.

Geula: Jerusalem's beating heart of ultra-Orthodox life

Originally just one small district, Geula has become so synonymous with haredi life that its name now blankets an entire cluster of neighborhoods. 

JULY 18, 2025ByALEX WINSTON
Several haredim (ultra-Orthodox Jews) are seen walking around Jerusalem's Geula neighborhood.

Reality check: Ultra-Orthodox rabbis are leading their flock to a historic dead end - opinion

MIDDLE ISRAEL: In their wartime conduct, the ultra-orthodox rabbis show a lack of commitment and a real disconnection with reality.

JULY 18, 2025ByAMOTZ ASA-EL
"We are at war. Join it! Fully, immediately, to the last of you, like everyone else," Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu does not tell Shas leader Arye Deri.

'My conscience is clear': Why MK Yuli Edelstein won't settle for a soft haredi draft - interview

"This law ends the phenomenon of pretending to study Torah. To me, that’s a disgrace to the world of Torah," Edelstein told Maariv.

JULY 18, 2025ByANNA BARSKY
Chairman of the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee MK Yuli Edelstein speaks at the Muni Expo 2025 conference in Tel Aviv, on July 15, 2025.

Israel Police, with FBI's help, collect testimony from Chaim Rotter victim in US

Rotter's arrest has been consistently extended, and several others who are close to him were apprehended for questioning as well. 

JULY 17, 2025BySARAH BEN-NUN
Chaim Rotter arrives to a court hearing at the Magistrate's Court in Tel Aviv, July 2, 2025

Torah with social responsibility: Choosing action over exemption - opinion

When it comes to the army enlistment crisis, ultra-Orthodox leaders show a detached interpretation of Torah that distances it from practical life.

JULY 17, 2025ByMOSHE TUR-PAZ
IN OCTOBER 2023, after he began reserve duty in Gaza following the Hamas attack, the writer comes to the Knesset in uniform and addresses the plenum. After his appearance, he returned to his military service.