An estimated 25,000 Gerrer chassidim gathered Monday evening outside Israel’s Military Prison 10 for a massive tefillah and protest rally following the arrest of a bochur from Yeshivas Sfas Emes over the ongoing draft controversy.

The rally was led by the Gerrer Rebbe and attended by the Machnovka-Belz Rebbe, along with United Torah Judaism chairman MK Yitzchok Goldknopf.

The gathering lasted several hours and included isolated confrontations between protesters and police and military personnel. Video from the scene showed a small number of demonstrators shaking the prison’s perimeter fence while chanting, “Break it down, break it down.”

Organizers in Gur described the rally as a major success.

“We expected about 15,000 participants, but around 25,000 came,” organizers said. “The goal was for the public to express its pain over the arrest of yeshiva bochurim, and for us, that was the most important message.”

Following the rally, a group of protesters traveled to Tel Aviv to demonstrate outside the home of Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)