Haredi Draft Evasion: Yeshiva Student Arrested in Israel

A yeshiva student with prominent family connections was arrested yesterday in what marks an escalation in enforcement actions against haredi draft evaders. Moti Mishkovsky, who studies at Netivot Yitzchak Yeshiva in Tel Aviv, was detained near Ben Shemen Forest and subsequently transferred to military police custody.

Mishkovsky previously studied at Beit Matityahu Yeshiva before moving to Netivot Yitzchak, headed by Rabbi Lau. He is the grandson of Rabbi Natan Zukovsky, head of the Gaon Yaakov Yeshiva and chairman of the spiritual committee of Yated Ne'eman, a major haredi newspaper aligned with the Lithuanian stream of ultra-Orthodox Judaism.

The arrest has generated particular interest within the Lithuanian haredi community due to the student's family background and his affiliation with yeshivas associated with the mainstream Lithuanian establishment.

Once word spread that Mishkovsky had been moved to the checkpoint, dozens of yeshiva students and young married men arrived to protest his transfer. For over an hour, a demonstration took place at the site, during which confrontations and violent incidents erupted between protesters and police and military forces guarding the checkpoint.

The protest caused severe traffic congestion and gridlock in the area. During the events, police closed Highway 443 to traffic from the Shilat junction to Begin Road.

According to reports, after being handed to military police, Mishkovsky is expected to appear before a judge today who will rule on his case. Meanwhile, senior figures in Degel HaTorah, a major haredi political party, are working to secure his release.

The transfer comes just days after the Attorney General on Tuesday demanded stricter enforcement against haredi draft evaders. She called for expanding personal economic enforcement measures as soon as possible and instructed the IDF and police to resume proactive operations and arrests against those avoiding military service.

Against the backdrop of this directive, there are currently approximately 50,000 draft evaders in the haredi community and another 31,000 with deferred service orders. Over the past year, 860 arrests have been carried out, 244 individuals were detained by police, and 1,528 were stopped at Ben Gurion Airport and border crossings. Since the beginning of this year, 34 indictments have been filed against draft evaders. According to the data presented, approximately 80% of haredim subject to the draft are still not enlisting.

According to organizations providing assistance to yeshiva students and young married men, more than 44 young haredi men classified as draft evaders are expected to spend this Shabbat in military prison.

In recent days, this number has also grown to include Breslov Hasidim who turned themselves in, partly motivated by a desire to regularize their status ahead of travel to Uman for Rosh Hashanah.