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Haredi March in Bnei Brak Launches “Tzeva Shahor” Protest Party
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Protest March Launches New Haredi Party
Hundreds of ultra-Orthodox men marched through Bnei Brak to demonstrate support for 160 haredi draft evaders who had recently served time in a military prison. The rally also served as the public debut of “Tzeva Shahor” (Black Color), a newly formed haredi protest party. Organizers concealed the political purpose of the march because they feared intervention by police or rabbinical authorities.
Background: Draft Evasion and Anti-Conscription Network
The draft evaders, referred to by supporters as “prisoners of Torah,” were not captured during a routine operation; instead they were stopped while attempting to leave Israel to visit the grave of Rabbi Nachman of Breslov in Uman for the Rosh Hashanah holidays. The anti-conscription alert network that later evolved into Tzeva Shahor originally existed to warn supporters when military police sought to arrest haredi draft evaders.
Key Figures
- Gadi Eisenkot – Leader of the Yashar Party, a right-wing political group.
- Avigdor Leiberman – Leader of the Yisrael Beytenu party, a centrist nationalist faction.
Official Statements & Responses
Gadi Eisenkot characterized the Bnei Brak march as a rebuke of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s administration, labeling it a “Government of Evasion” that tolerates draft desertion and undermines national security. He argued that the government’s failure to enforce conscription signals the end of its tenure and called for a “Zionist mobilization government” that would enact a robust draft law, honor serving soldiers, and impose penalties on evaders.
Avigdor Leiberman echoed this criticism, asserting that the coalition’s reliance on the haredi draft-evader bloc means Netanyahu’s government cannot sustain itself without their support.
Data & Statistics
- Participants: Hundreds of haredi men took part in the march.
- Draft evaders highlighted: 160 individuals who had completed sentences in a military prison.
- Political outcome: Launch of the Tzeva Shahor party, transitioning from an alert network to an organized political movement.