Ultra-Orthodox

Rep. Lawler letter asking Netanyahu to exempt dual citizens from draft dodging arrests resurfaces

Lawler’s letter, now circulating again, asked Israel to safeguard the mobility of US-Israel dual citizens impacted by attorney-general directives linked to haredi draft evasion.

US Congressman Mike Lawler (R-NY) arrives prior to a closed briefing on Iran for members of the House of Representatives on Capitol Hill in Washington, June 27, 2025; illustrative.
Ultra-Orthodox Jews protests attempts to establish a draft bill in the Knesset, in Bnei Brak, December 8, 2025.

Haredi teenager suffers head injury in hit-and-run at Bnei Brak protest, arrests made

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich seen after a press conference at the Finance Ministry in Jerusalem on December 4, 2025.

Religious Zionist Party crosses threshold with four seats as coalition bloc climbs to 53 - poll

Romance and erotica novels are gaining popularity among religious women in Israel, with some rabbis quietly endorsing the genre for 'peace in the home.'

From Talmud to temptation: How erotica found a home in Orthodox Israel


'A movement takes time': How one rabbi is slowly changing the haredi draft debate

Behind protests and politics, a quiet revolution is reshaping ultra-Orthodox attitudes toward military service.

Ultra-Orthodox Jews carry a banner in Hebrew that reads, “to prison and not the army,” during a “million man” protest against military conscription, in Jerusalem October 30, 2025.

Haredi exemption has become Israel's greatest internal security threat - analysis

Allowing ultra-Orthodox Jews to refrain from sharing the burden of IDF service is unsustainable and existentially dangerous.

Haredi protesters against the IDF draft demonstrate in Jerusalem on October 30, 2025.

WATCH: Haredi protesters set fires, block roads, throw stones at police officers, in Beit Shemesh

Haredi demonstrators rioted in Beit Shemesh, blocking buses and throwing stones, as police units moved in to disperse the crowd.

Haredi (ultra-Orthodox) protesters gather in Mea She'arim, Jerusalem, to celebrate draft dodgers' release from miiltary prison, November 30, 2025; illustrative.

Aliyah Minister Sofer vows to vote against haredi draft bill, 'even if Netanyahu fires me'

RZP's Ofir Sofer to oppose draft legislation, defying faction head Bezalel Smotrich • Bismuth brings new haredi draft bill outline to Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee

Aliyah and Integration Minister Minister Ofir Sofer holds a press conference at the Knesset, the Israeli parliament in Jerusalem, December 1, 2025

New haredi draft bill dodges real service demands, delays accountability - editorial

The bill is a clear attempt by Netanyahu to move the goalpost as little as possible while keeping his ultra-Orthodox coalition partners satiated.

 Ultra orthodox Jews scuffle with police during a protest against the drafting of ultra orthodox jews outside an IDF Recruitment Center in Jeursalem, November 12, 2025.

Bismuth advances updated ultra-Orthodox IDF draft bill as Knesset prepares for decisive debates

The revised bill is described by its drafters as a “balanced” response - but its core architecture offers the haredi sector a wide window of relief.

Likud MK Boaz Bismuth, chair of the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, leads a meeting at the Knesset, in Jerusalem, November 10, 2025

Ultra-Orthodox Brooklyn man who abused child may see 103-year sentence reduced - NYT

The message Brooklyn's district attorney was sending was that “politics matters more than protecting children,” said Boorey Deutsch, the husband of the woman who Weberman abused when she was a girl.

Nechemya Weberman convicted for 103 years in prison.

Colombian authorities, Interpol rescue 17 minors from ultra-Orthodox Lev Tahor sect

Five of the minors had an Interpol Yellow Notice, used in cases of missing persons and human trafficking. The Lev Tahor victims were nationals from the United States, Canada, and Guatemala.

Minors rescued in Colombia from the Lev Tahor sect.

Ultra-Orthodox leaders give haredi factions green light to advance IDF draft bill

The past week has seen violence from within the haredi community from extremists who are against a law that would require army enlistment from members of the community.

 Rabbi Dov Lando seen during a meeting to discuss the drafting of ultra-Orthodox jews to the IDF in the ultra-Orthodox city of Bnei Brak, April 5, 2024.

Liberman slams haredi draft-dodger extremists, ultra-Orthodox parties condemn violence

UTJ and Shas denounce violent haredi extremists as tensions rise over a contentious IDF draft bill, prompting political backlash and stalled legislation.

Yisrael Beytenu chairperson Avigdor Liberman denounces the haredi extremists during a Knesset faction press conference, November 17, 2025.

‘Don’t ask, don’t tell’ aliyah: All different kinds of Jews are welcome in Israel - opinion

Will Israel abandon those unable to provide the requisite rabbinical letter? If so, how could Israel claim moral superiority to countries that turned away boatloads of Jews fleeing Nazi Europe?

ALIYAH AND INTEGRATION Minister Ofir Sofer (right) welcomes new immigrants from France at Ben-Gurion Airport last year. As many consider a move to the Jewish homeland, Israel must prepare to receive its sons and daughters, says the writer.