Hundreds of thousands of Orthodox Jews shut down Jerusalem in mass protest against IDF enlistment

Nearly all Israelis agree that the ultra-Orthodox must play a larger role in Israel’s national defence, particularly in the aftermath of Hamas’s Oct. 7, 2023, attack

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Israeli police estimated that more than 300,000 haredim from all ultra-Orthodox streams gathered in what was dubbed a “million-man march” at the entrance to Israel’s capital on Thursday to protest efforts to enlist them to the Israel Defense Forces and to condemn arrests by the IDF of yeshiva students, who have ignored enlistment orders.

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One death was reported during the demonstration. Menachem Mendel Litzman, 20, fell from a height of about 20 stories at a construction site in Jerusalem. The police said it was an apparent suicide.

The rally, in which protesters prayed and recited Psalms, included participants from the Lithuanian, Chassidic and Sephardic Haredi communities.

Columnist Jesse Kline keeps you up to date with what’s happening in Israel and the effects of antisemitism on life here in Canada. Friday mornings.