Thousands of ultra‑Orthodox demonstrators marched through Jerusalem on September 29, 2026, to welcome haredi draft evaders recently released from military detention. The protest, organized by the Peleg Yerushalmi faction, featured strong anti‑draft and anti‑IDF slogans and packed the streets around Kikar HaShabbat, Shmuel HaNavi and Bar Ilan. Senior politicians including Gadi Eizenkot, Avigdor Liberman and Naftali Bennett condemned the rally, tying it to the election campaign and demanding investigations into alleged payments to the released men.
Thousands of Ultra‑Orthodox Protest in Jerusalem, Vow Not To Serve as Draft Debate Intensifies
Ultra-Orthodox (haredi) protesters hold signs at a massive anti-draft march in Jerusalem, September 29, 2026. (photo credit: SCREENSHOT/X)
Thousands of ultra‑Orthodox (haredi) demonstrators marched through Jerusalem on Tuesday to greet haredi draft evaders recently released from military detention, staging a large protest along Kikar HaShabbat and continuing down Shmuel HaNavi and Bar Ilan streets.
Local broadcaster KAN News said the rally was organized by the hard‑line Jerusalem Faction known as Peleg Yerushalmi, a group that opposes Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) conscription for haredi men.
Video and photographs from the protest showed packed streets and participants holding placards with explicit anti‑draft and anti‑IDF messages. Slogans included:
"With all your soul, we will die and will not enlist."
"Release the hostages from Prison 10, who will never serve in the enemy's army."
"If I had to choose whether he would go to the army or die the way he died, I would prefer that he die."
"We will not sacrifice our children at the altar of Zionism."
The demonstration drew swift criticism from several political figures who connected the rally to the national election campaign and the broader dispute over Israel’s draft law.
Political Backlash
Yashar party head Gadi Eizenkot took to X (formerly Twitter) to condemn the march, framing the upcoming vote as a choice between "a government of evasion and a Zionist government of the draft" and warning that "the State of Israel cannot afford another term of a government of evasion."
Ultra-Orthodox (haredi) protesters hold signs at a massive anti-draft march in Jerusalem, September 29, 2026. (credit: SCREENSHOT/X)
Yisrael Beytenu chairman Avigdor Liberman also denounced the event, calling it a "welcoming parade for 'released' draft evaders" and likening the reception to that of soldiers returning from combat. Liberman urged Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz to publicly condemn the parade and demanded an investigation into alleged payments made to the released men.
Former prime minister Naftali Bennett, now leader of the B'Yachad party, said the rally "abused and embarrassed" fighters and accused Netanyahu and Shas chairman Aryeh Deri of directing state funds to people who do not serve. Brig.‑Gen. (res.) Ofer Winter, founder of the People of Israel party, said the march was an affront to IDF soldiers.
Earlier in the week, Bennett, Liberman and Reservists‑Economic Party head Yoaz Hendel criticized a related march in Bnei Brak opposing haredi enlistment, calling it a "parade of draft evaders and shirkers." The three linked both demonstrations to electioneering and the continuing dispute over conscription policy.
Context
The protests underscore deepening tensions over conscription in Israel, where debates about the role of haredi communities in national service have long been politically charged. Critics say that exemptions and payments to draft refusers are undermining national security and fairness; supporters of exemptions argue for protection of religious study and community cohesion.
Photographs circulating on social media showed large crowds and handwritten signs. The rally took place on September 29, 2026. Miriam Sela‑Eitam and Tzvi Jasper contributed to this report.
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