Dozens of haredi (ultra-Orthodox) protesters blocked Gilat Junction near Ofakim on Monday in response to the arrest of a draft dodger by Ofakim police.
Police officers managed to disperse the protests, which blocked Highway 25 and Route 241 after dozens of protesters arrived at the junction and began blocking traffic lanes, according to Israel Police.
“Traffic at the junction has reopened and is operating as normal,” the police said.
“After a police officer called out to the protesters to clear the road and that this was an illegal protest, the protesters began to lie down on the road and next to the wheels of vehicles,” the police added.
Earlier on Monday, 17 haredi men were indicted by the state for breaking into the home of IDF Chief Military Police Officer Brig.-Gen. Yuval Yamin during a protest on April 28 against the enlistment of yeshiva students.
Charges of rioting, trespassing, malicious damage
The indictment includes charges of rioting, trespassing, and malicious damage against the defendants, including four minors, who allegedly broke through the locked gate outside Yamin’s Ashkelon home while his wife and two children, one of whom is a minor, were inside the house.
According to the indictment, the Ashkelon protesters carried signs with slogans like “War on the draft law, in actions and not words,” and shouted phrases like “We will die and not enlist” and “Yuval Yamin is a traitor.”
The Ashkelon Magistrate’s Court received the indictment, which comes amid increasingly violent protests and riots against the arrest of draft dodgers and haredi enlistment in general.
Sarah Ben-Nun contributed to this report.
