Hundreds of thousands gathered Thursday in Jerusalem for what some called “Prayer for Shalom HaMedina ” (Prayer for the Peace/Welfare of the State of Israel), representing a broad, unified front of the ultra-Orthodox (Haredi), traditional and Religious Zionist communities.

The massive demonstration, characterized by prayer only with no speeches, is a powerful expression of concern over recent arrests of Torah students and, more broadly, a perceived assault by progressive, left-wing forces on the nation’s traditional values and the role of the Torah in Israeli life.

The primary catalyst for this convergence is the arrest of yeshiva students for evading military conscription orders. Organizers and participants frame this action by the Justice Department and police not as a simple matter

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