Sabbath Cafe Clash Lays Bare Israel Faultlines
The weekly standoff highlights anger over Sabbath observance and military draft exemptions as secular Israelis and ultra-Orthodox Jews clash over public life.
- Since June, ultra-Orthodox protesters have gathered weekly at Cafe Basimta in central Jerusalem, shouting 'Shabbat!' to oppose its operation on the Jewish day of rest.
- Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has relied on ultra-Orthodox political support for nearly two decades, granting them religious study stipends and military service exemptions in exchange.
- Aya Lewkowicz, a Pink Front activist, defended the cafe's right to operate, stating 'Everyone should have the freedom to rest the way they want to rest and not have it be dictated by a small minority.'
- Soldier Alma Ronen, 20, expressed frustration over draft disparities, saying 'I feel anger in my heart that only some people must go to the army and serve.' The issue has become central to election challengers like Gadi Eisenkot.
- Shlomit Ravitsky Tur Paz, head of the Israel Democracy Institute's religion and state programme, noted that while Israeli society grows more secular, demographic shifts increase the ultra-Orthodox proportion, intensifying political criticism of their government role.
12 Articles
12 Articles
Sabbath cafe clash lays bare Israel faultlines
Every week since June, ultra-Orthodox protesters have descended on a cafe in central Jerusalem that lies precariously close to their neighbourhood, angered it has opened on the Sabbath, or Shabbat, the day of rest when observant Jews shun work, machinery and exchanging money. Clad in their matching modest black suits, dozens of ultra-Orthodox Jews -- all men and boys -- shouted "Shabbat!" as they approached Cafe Basimta, with several younger one…
Every Saturday Ultraorthodoxes protest in front of a café in Jerusalem, which also opened on the Sabbath. Secular Israelis hold against it. The dispute shows how deep the conflict over religion and the future of the country extends. By J. Poppendieck.
Jerusalem Sabbath cafe clash exposes Israel’s widening social divide
JERUSALEM (AFP) : Alma Ronen has been fighting in the Israeli military nearly constantly for more than two years. Spending her Saturday not in uniform but in a T-shirt and jeans, she would like to enjoy a coffee outside — and resents that her more religious compatriots think otherwise.Every week since June, ultra-Orthodox protesters have descended on a cafe in central Jerusalem that lies precariously close to their neighborhood, angered it has o…
The Haredi protest began several weeks ago in Safed and spread to Meron. The demonstrators are trying to prevent public transportation lines from leaving Safed before the end of Shabbat. There are 70 activists from the "Free Road" organization at the site, who are confronting about 150 Haredi. Police forces are on site
Istanbul: The protests against a cafe that opens on Saturdays in central West Jerusalem continued for the seventh consecutive week, while unknown persons sabotaged its entrance lock in an attempt to prevent its operation. The protests began in front of the Café Basimta, near Agripps Street, on 4 July last, and escalated over the past weeks into confrontations between Haridim and pro-prosecutors [...]
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