A large hafgana erupted near the Maccabim Checkpoint on Route 443 on Thursday night after a yeshiva bochur — the grandson of a prominent Rosh Yeshiva — was arrested over his failure to report for military service and transferred to military police custody.
The arrested bochur was identified as Motti Mishkovsky, a talmid at Yeshivas Nesivos Yitzchak in Tel Aviv. He previously learned at Yeshivas Beis Mattisyahu.
Mishkovsky is a grandson of HaGaon HaRav Nosson Zochovsky, Rosh Yeshiva of Yeshivas Gaon Yaakov and chairman of the spiritual committee of the Yated Ne’eman newspaper.
According to reports, Mishkovsky was arrested by Israel Police near the Ben Shemen Forest after authorities determined that he was listed as a military “draft evader.” He was subsequently handed over to military police.
Following word of the arrest, Chareidim began mobilizing for a hafgana. Because the location of the arrest near Ben Shemen made it difficult for large numbers of bochurim to reach the area, protesters instead gathered at the nearby Maccabim Checkpoint on Route 443.
Dozens blocked the roadway as police moved in to clear the highway, leading to clashes between officers and protesters.
At least one bochur was injured during the confrontation.
The arrest comes amid an intensified enforcement campaign against those who have failed to report for IDF service following the expiration of the longstanding legal framework governing the status of yeshiva bochurim.
Just days earlier, Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara told the High Court that the IDF and Israel Police must resume proactive enforcement operations and arrests against “draft evaders” across all sectors of the population.
The government’s response to the court acknowledged the particular difficulties involved in carrying out such arrests in the Chareidi community because of the large demonstrations that frequently follow.
Officials cited “the significant difficulty that currently exists in carrying out proactive operations and arresting draft evaders from the Chareidi population, in light of the widespread disturbances that accompany them.”
Mishkovsky remained in military custody following his arrest.
(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)
