The number of Jews evading military service in the Israeli army has risen to about 110,000, from about 75,000 at the start of 2026, Israel’s public broadcaster Kan reported on Sunday evening.
According to the report, the number of people avoiding service keeps rising after thousands of call-up orders were issued, and it is expected to rise further in the coming days.
By the Israeli army’s count, about 80 per cent of those now evading military service are members of the ultra-Orthodox Jewish community, known as Haredim.
Even though so many people are evading service, and a Supreme Court ruling has insisted the law be enforced against them, enforcement has in practice largely stalled, with no effective action beyond a handful of exceptions.
Besides arresting some people at Ben Gurion airport, the authorities have arrested 14 Haredi Jews evading service and 13 people from other communities in surprise raids in various places.
A large operation against evaders had been planned for this month, but it was cancelled after a dispute between the police and the army over sharing responsibility for the arrests.
The police asked the army for 300 soldiers to help with the operation, but the army refused, arguing that arresting draft evaders is not part of its duties.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report