Latest news with #UltraOrthodox
Al Jazeera
3 hours ago
- Politics
- Al Jazeera
Ultra-Orthodox Jews, Israeli police scuffle in West Jerusalem
Ultra-Orthodox Jews, Israeli police scuffle in West Jerusalem NewsFeed A confrontation unfolded between ultra-Orthodox Jewish men and Israeli police in West Jerusalem on Wednesday. The ultra-Orthodox demonstrators were protesting the recent arrests of several men from their group for refusing military conscription orders. Video Duration 01 minutes 43 seconds 01:43 Video Duration 01 minutes 17 seconds 01:17 Video Duration 03 minutes 07 seconds 03:07 Video Duration 00 minutes 54 seconds 00:54 Video Duration 03 minutes 18 seconds 03:18 Video Duration 00 minutes 40 seconds 00:40 Video Duration 03 minutes 00 seconds 03:00
Al Jazeera
16-07-2025
- Politics
- Al Jazeera
Israeli Ultra-Orthodox party quits government as Netanyahu loses majority
A key partner in Benjamin Netanyahu's governing coalition says it is quitting, leaving the Israeli prime minister with a minority in parliament. The Ultra-Orthodox Shas party said on Wednesday that it was leaving the government in response to a long-running dispute over mandatory military service, Israeli media reported. Another ultra-Orthodox party resigned from the government earlier this week. Leading a minority government would make governing a challenge for Netanyahu. But Shas said it wouldn't work to undermine the coalition once outside it and could vote with it on some laws. It also wouldn't support its collapse. More to come…
Time of India
17-06-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
Iran missile attack: Tehran launches 400 ballistic missiles, Israel kills Iranian commander, internet disruption in Iran
Iran-Israel conflict began on Friday when Tel Aviv launched an unprecedented aerial campaign targeting Iranian nuclear and military facilities. Ultra Orthodox jews look at an impacted site following missile attack from Iran on Israel, in Bnei Brak, Israel June 16, 2025. (Reuters photo) Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads FAQs Iran has so far fired 400 ballistic missiles and 100s of UAVs towards Israel, Israeli military official said, as per a Reuters report. Air raid sirens sounded in the Tel Aviv area and parts of northern Israel on Tuesday, the military said, after warning of a fresh salvo of incoming missiles fired from Iran, AFP Israeli military said Tuesday its forces struck several locations in western Iran, hitting 'dozens' of missile launchers as the arch-foes traded fire for a fifth straight Iranian media reported widespread internet disruption on Tuesday as Israel and Iran traded fire for a fifth straight day. It was not immediately clear what caused the disruption. Iran has imposed internet restrictions since Israel launched its unprecedented aerial campaign against Iranian military and nuclear facilities on Israeli military said earlier on Tuesday that it killed senior Iranian commander Ali Shadmani in an overnight strike on a "command centre in the heart of Tehran" -- just four days after his predecessor, Gholam Ali Rashid, was killed in a similar Israeli also said it had targeted multiple missile and drone sites in western Iran overnight, including infrastructure, launchers and storage facilities, with black-and-white footage showing some of them mounting calls to de-escalate, neither side has backed off from the blitz that began Friday, when Israel launched an unprecedented aerial campaign targeting Iranian nuclear and military facilities.A1. Iran-Israel conflict began on Friday when Tel Aviv launched an unprecedented aerial campaign targeting Iranian nuclear and military facilities.A2. Iran has so far fired 400 ballistic missiles and 100s of UAVs towards Israel.
Straits Times
16-06-2025
- Politics
- Straits Times
Israeli resilience tested as Iranian missile strikes hit home
Emergency personnel work at an impact site following a missile attack from Iran on Israel, in Tel Aviv, Israel, June 16, 2025. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun Rescue personnel evacuate a man from an impacted residential building compound following missile attack from Iran on Israel, central Israel June 16, 2025. REUTERS/Itay Cohen Ultra Orthodox jews look at an impacted site following missile attack from Iran on Israel, in Bnei Brak, Israel June 16, 2025. REUTERS/Miro Maman TEL AVIV/JERUSALEM - Four days into their war with Iran, Israelis are shaken and anxious, yet remain resilient, still backing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's decision to confront a longstanding foe. Netanyahu ordered a surprise attack on Iran in the early hours of Friday, vowing to end Tehran's nuclear ambitions, which he says represent an existential threat to his nation. In response, Iran has fired nightly barrages of ballistic missiles that have brought destruction in their wake -- and also stirred defiance among some of those who have suffered. "We trust God and Bibi Netanyahu," said Suki Yoram, standing in front of his partially destroyed block of flats in the Petah Tikva neighbourhood, just east of Tel Aviv, which was hit by a missile overnight, killing four people. "We are with you till the end, do not stop, go on... There is no other choice," he told Reuters. Dozens of apartment blocks and other buildings in central and northern Israel have been wrecked by the waves of missiles since Friday, leaving 24 dead and hundreds injured. The severity and depth of the damage have outstripped anything that either Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip or Hezbollah fighters in neighbouring Lebanon have managed to inflict on Israel in decades of confrontation. "It's very sad. And we don't want to lose any people. But what can you do," said Adi Shindler, 71, a Jerusalem resident. Israel's longest-serving prime minister, Netanyahu has repeatedly warned that Iran was looking to build nuclear weapons and wanted to turn them on Israel -- a small nation home to nearly half the world's Jews. Iran has said its nuclear programme is purely for civilian purposes, but Israelis, whose society has been shaped by the memory of the Nazi Holocaust, think otherwise. "We don't have a choice. It's better this way than to have missiles come at us, nuclear missiles. And then we're all dead," said Shindler. Israel's own airstrikes have gutted Iran's nuclear and military leadership. Iran's death toll has reached at least 224, with civilians accounting for 90% of the casualties, an Iranian official said. Thousands of residents of Tehran are fleeing their homes and stockpiling essential supplies for fear that Israel's campaign will escalate in the coming days. CLOSING RANKS Netanyahu is a deeply divisive figure in Israel. Many blame him for failing to prevent the October 7, 2023 attacks by Hamas on southern Israel, that killed around 1,200 people and triggered a brutal war in Gaza that is still grinding on. Opposition politicians have accused him of prolonging that conflict to stave off a reckoning over the 2023 security failings. But they have closed ranks since the Israeli airforce launched its mass assault on Iran on June 13. "When it comes to the security of the people of Israel in the face of our enemies, we are one people, with one mission. Our children will not live in fear of an Iranian nuclear bomb. Not today, not ever," said opposition leader Yair Lapid. A poll released on Monday by Agam Labs researchers said 70% of Israelis supported the military assault on Iran -- a number that rose to 83% among the country's Jewish population. Only 16% of people surveyed opposed the operation. Nonetheless, the nightly rush to air raid shelters and scenes of bombed-out homes is jangling nerves. When an Iranian rocket, which typically carries between 300-700 kg (660-1,540 pounds) of explosives, makes a direct hit near the heavily populated coast, the boom can be distinctly heard 55 km away (35 miles) in Jerusalem. In Tel Aviv, 31-year-old chef Guydo Tetelbaun stood on smashed glass and debris outside what had once his apartment. "It's terrifying because it's so unknown," he said in the early hours of Monday. "This could be the beginning of a long time like this, or it could get worse, or hopefully better, but it's the unknown that's the scariest." While there is undoubtedly broad support for the attack on Iran, not everyone agrees with the war -- the biggest conflagration of the past 20 months during which time Israel has also squared off against Gaza, Lebanon, Syria and Yemen. "I don't think it will bring any good," said Ben Keller, an Israeli studying for a doctorate in Britain and currently back home to see his family. "I never really believed Iran would use a nuclear weapon. It's just something people like to have in order to make threats, but they won't actually use it," he said. Investors, however, seemed to take the view that the conflict would ultimately be good for Israel, betting that Netanyahu would win his military gamble and manage to destroy Iran's nuclear ambitions, removing a long shadow over the country and its economy. The shekel gained more than 3% against the dollar on Monday -- its biggest daily percentage gain since at least 2008 -- while the Tel Aviv stock market rose 2%. "Reducing Israel's geopolitical risk significantly is likely to reduce the risk premium priced into the bond market and provide Israel with a more positive growth outlook," said Jonathan Katz, chief economist at Leader Capital Markets. 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News24
12-06-2025
- Politics
- News24
Despite anger over Israel conscription, Netanyahu coalition survives government dissolution vote
Israel's government survived a bid to dissolve parliament. Ultra-Orthodox parties voted to retain Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's coalition. The opposition hoped to force elections. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's coalition survived an opposition-backed effort to dissolve parliament on Thursday, as lawmakers rejected a bill that could have paved the way for snap elections. Out of the Knesset's 120 members, 61 voted against the proposal, with 53 in favour. READ | Netanyahu admits supporting anti-Hamas Gaza militants: 'What is bad about that?' The opposition had introduced the bill hoping to force elections with the help of ultra-Orthodox parties angry at Netanyahu over the contentious issue of conscription for deeply religious Jews. While the opposition is composed mainly of centrist and leftist groups, ultra-Orthodox parties that are propping up Netanyahu's government had earlier threatened to back the motion. Saeed Qaq/Anadolu via Getty Images Local media reported on Thursday morning however that most ultra-Orthodox lawmakers ultimately agreed not to support the proposal to dissolve the government. After their failed vote, the opposition will now have to wait six months to submit another bill. Opposition faction leaders had said on Wednesday that their decision to bring the bill to the Knesset for a vote was 'made unanimously and is binding on all factions'. They added that all opposition parties would freeze their lawmaking activities to focus on 'the overthrow of the government'. Netanyahu's coalition, formed in December 2022, is one of the most right-wing in the country's history. It includes two ultra-Orthodox parties - Shas and United Torah Judaism (UTJ). The two parties had threatened to back the motion for early elections amid a row over compulsory military service. Military service is mandatory in Israel but under a ruling that dates to the country's creation - when the ultra-Orthodox were a very small community - men who devote themselves full-time to the study of sacred Jewish texts are given a de facto pass. Jaafar Ashtiyeh/AFP Whether that should change has been a long-running issue. Efforts to scrap the exemption and the resulting blowback have intensified during the nearly 20-month war in Gaza as the military looks for extra manpower. Netanyahu is under pressure from his Likud party to draft more ultra-Orthodox men and impose penalties on dodgers - a red line for parties such as Shas, who demand a law guaranteeing their members permanent exemption from military service. Ahead of the Thursday morning vote, Israeli media reported that officials from Netanyahu's coalition were holding talks with ultra-Orthodox leaders hoping to find common ground on the issue. Mohammad Mansour/AFP In an apparent bid to allow time for those negotiations, Netanyahu's coalition filled the Knesset's agenda with bills to delay the dissolution vote. Far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said on Wednesday that bringing down the government during wartime would pose 'an existential danger' to Israel's future. 'History will not forgive anyone who drags the state of Israel into elections during a war,' Smotrich told parliament, adding that there was a 'national and security need' for ultra-Orthodox to fight in the military. Netanyahu's government is held together by an alliance between his Likud party, far-right groups and ultra-Orthodox Jewish parties, whose departure would mean the end of the government.
